James and Battista garner ECAC Athlete-of-the-Week accolades

January 14, 2004

NORTON, MA- Wheaton College women's indoor track and field standouts Amber James (Woodbury, MN/Woodbury) and Noelle Battista (Warwick, RI/Toll Gate) swept the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Athlete-of-the-Week awards for the week ending on Sunday, January 11. James picked up the honor for her accomplishments on the track, while Battista earned the award for her performances on the field.

James, a senior and three-time national champion in the indoor 400-meter dash, and Battista, only a sophomore, led the reigning five-time national champion Lyons to a bronze finish at the 35th annual Dartmouth Relays in Hanover, New Hampshire. The tandem helped lead Wheaton to a total of 48 points in Leverone Field House.

James tallied 14 points alone with an individual title in the 400-meter dash and a fourth-place mark in the 60-meter dash events. Topping the competition in the 400M event with an NCAA Division III national meet provisional qualifying time of 58.17, James also hit a provisional standard in the 60M race with a time of 7.81.

Battista's performance in the pole vault was quite impressive, as she shattered a Wheaton school record in the event. Vaulting to a height of 12' 4", Battista cleared the old school mark by more than seven inches. She also recorded a national meet automatic qualifying height and in the process gave the Lyons 10 points with her top placement. Battista will compete at the NCAA Division III Championship at the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater on March 12-13.

The defending champion women will continue defense of their national title this Sunday, January 18, as Wheaton gets set to compete at the Greater Boston Track Club (GBTC) Invitational hosted by Harvard University. Start time is slated for 9:00 a.m.

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Upcoming Schedule

11-Jan Sun Dartmouth Relays 9:00am
16-Jan Fri Sorlien Invitational 1:30pm
23-24-Jan Fri-Sat Terrier Classic 11:00am