Wheaton senior made
a big impression
Ashante Little was never satisfied at excelling at just one event, or improving an individual time.
The Wheaton College senior from Seabrook, N.H. harnessed a tireless passion in track and field to become a 16-time Division 3 All-America selection, earning two national titles along the way.
Her success has made a big impact on the Wheaton program, where her accomplishments have reverberated across the rest of the roster.
“I shadowed Ashante as a senior in high school when I was visiting the campus, and right from the start, I knew she was someone to look out for,” said Francesca Flynn , a sophomore sprinter from Farmington, Conn. via Northwest Catholic.
“At first, I had no concept of what the nationals tournament was, or how hard it was. But once I joined the team and saw what Ashante was doing, I figured out that it was a reality.”
As a sprinter, Little did not have high expectations upon entering college. And she was not sure that she would return as a sophomore. Her rise since then could not have been more pronounced.
Like many other track athletes, much of her motivation came from constant opportunities to outperform her most recent time.
“That first time you taste a little bit of success, it just makes you hungrier,” said Little, a graduate of Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, N.H.
“As soon as I realized that I was getting better and that there was more work to do, I couldn’t stop.”
She won the 400-meter national title outdoors last spring, as a junior, breaking the tape in 54.79 seconds. She repeated the feat indoors in March, in 55.10. That led her to being honored as the indoor national track athlete of the year by the US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. She is a seven-time All-New England recipient, and the 2014 NEWMAC Track Athlete of the Year.
“She took the bar and pushed it to another stratosphere,” said third-year Wheaton coach Dave Cusano .
“She’s allowed us to develop younger athletes to hopefully a level where we feel they’re fit for the national level. For her, running relays is more about opportunities for other athletes to become All-Americans.”
That was certainly the case last weekend in her final competition as a collegian, at an NCAA Division 3 national championship in Delaware, Ohio.
Wheaton tied for sixth overall, the program’s best finish since 2004. On Saturday, Kelly Ludew , Amber Spencer , Little, and Flynn teamed up for a fifth-place finish in the 4x100 relay (47.15).
Little then ran a career-best 54.17 in the 400 meters, but placed second, behind Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Lexie Sondgeroth (53.60). And she was third in the 400 hurdles (59.38). Tufts senior Jana Hieber (Goffstown, N.H.) won the event in 58.63. During Thursday’s preliminaries, Little’s time of 58.51 set an NCAA Division 3 and NCAA Division 3 championships record. In the 4x400, Little, Meredith Scannell , Spencer, and Kalah Thomas posted the eighth-best time (3:52.57).
“This weekend was really tough between the trials and finals, but I wanted to see if I could keep coming back,” Little said of the personal challenges she set for herself.
“It really means a lot to me to see what I could do in the year leading up to it. I wouldn’t have been able to last without proper training.”
Tufts men notch
another lacrosse title
Mike Daly and his men’s lacrosse program at Tufts captured its second NCAA Division 3 title in five years, surging past Salisbury, 12-9, at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium. At 21-2, the Jumbos set a program record for victories in a season, and finished the season with 423 goals to set a new NCAA single-season record. Junior Cole Bailey , named the game’s most outstanding player, netted a goal and assisted on five others. Sophomore midfielder Conor Helfrich of North Andover (Lawrence Academy) scored a goal in the final. Jake Gillespie , a sophomore midfielder from Topsfield (Masconomet), was 10th on the team in scoring (9-5-14). The Jumbos won the title despite not having junior Chris Schoenhut , the nation’s leading goal scorer (80), who was hurt at the NCAA semifinal win at RIT. . . . The Tufts women’s softball team squared off against Salisbury in the national championship game Tuesday afternoon after forcing a deciding third game Monday.
Enos excels at Bates
Bates College junior Sean Enos (Lynnfield/St. John’s Prep) finished fourth in the discus (172-1) at the Division 3 outdoor championships. It was Enos’s fifth career All-America honor. One day earlier, Enos added to his trophy case with a fourth-place throw in the hammer. Enos started as the ninth and final qualifier in the event, and his final 198-11 throw placed him near the top.
New Lowell coaches
Lowell High recently hired varsity boys’ hockey and boys’ basketball coaches. Brian Akashian , a 1996 Lowell High graduate and member of the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame, will direct the hockey program. He was most recently a men’s assistant at Holy Cross, his alma mater. Akashian finished his career at Lowell with 82 goals and 53 assists (135 points), a school record at the time.
Robert Michalczyk , who guided the Red Raider basketball program to the Division 1 tournament on an interim basis this season, will take over on an official basis. A Lowell High and Salem State grad, he was a former assistant at Salem State (2004-2006). . . .
Swampscott High senior righthander Al Wallach has committed to Southern Maine for the fall. The 6-foot-2, 150-pound Nahant resident also plays first base.
Jeff Powalisz can be reached at jcpowalisz@gmail.com.