FOR THE TEAM BEHIND THE TEAM
SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY | SPRING 2015
“Oh my gosh Southern Connecticut, we did this...”
IN
an era that oozes instant gratification, you can only imagine the tension that Southern Connecticut State University women’s track and field student-athletes Crystle Hill, Sarah Hill, Georgette Nixon and Shatajah Wattely must have endured at the 2015 NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field Championships in March. The quartet that comprised the Owls’ 4x400 relay team entered the national championship as the top overall seed in that event. When Wattely crossed the finish line first in her heat, the final heat, SCSU had seemingly secured the first relay national title in school history and 79th overall individual crown. However, due to a protest in one of the previous heats, it wasn’t until nearly an hour later that the official decree was out – the Owls were Crystle Hill, Sarah Hill, Georgette Nixon and national champions. Shatajah Wattely stand atop the podium after It was an even more impressive feat considering winning the national championship in the that the quartet had really only been racing 4x400 relay. together for a few weeks. Teammate Adriana Carrasco had also spent time during the winter as part of the 4x400 relay group. However, once the two Hills, Nixon and Wattely paired up to win a New England championship in the event a few weeks before, the final four participating at the NCAA Championships was decided upon. The range of vantage points for both relay members and coaches provided an interesting dynamic when assessing the emotional pendulum of the race. “Going across the finish line was unreal,” Wattely said. “The last 100 meters of the race it was like ‘okay, if I don’t haul right now, if I don’t get out, then this might not happen’. Then I did that and the girl kept drifting and drifting and during that last straightaway. I’m like ‘oh my gosh we did this, this is happening’. When I crossed, I looked at the screen waiting, patiently waiting, waiting for the results to come in and when it showed up I was like ‘oh my gosh Southern Connecticut, we did this.’” A race that spanned just under four minutes - 3:44.91 to be exact – was the culmination of years of training and included support from head women’s track and field coach Melissa Stoll, head men’s CONTINUED ON PAGE
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“Going across the finsh line was unreal.” – SHATAJAH WATTELY
Senior captain Luke Houston earned All-Conference honors as part of the Owls’ run to the Sweet 16.
Owls Reach Sweet 16 for Second Straight Year On the heels of a school record 30 victories and a trip to the Elite Eight, the Southern Connecticut State University men’s basketball team ensured that more accomplishments would be attained during the 2014-15 season. The Owls most recent campaign came to a close on March 17 with a loss in the NCAA East Regional final. SCSU finished the year with a 24-8 record and reached the Sweet 16 for the second straight year, a program first. Along the way, the Owls reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings and won the Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division title for the second consecutive season. After years of being an afterthought in the highly competitive NE-10, the Owls are now clearly reestablished as not only a conference contender, but also a player on the regional and national stages. “It was a wonderful year, it CONTINUED ON PAGE
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