NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Southern Connecticut State University Women's Indoor Track and Field season has begun. The team is ready for their upcoming Art Kadish Elm City Challenge meet this Friday and Saturday. 

The women's Indoor Track and Field team was picked as the number one team in the preseason, according to an NE10 coaches poll. 

Leticia DoNascimento, SCSU '27, said that while being a college freshman could be intimidating, it's the opposite for her on the team.  

"It was easy to get more comfortable with my teammates. We had like a barbeque kind of thing beforehand in the preseason," said DoNascimento. "So I was able to make friends a little bit before the season started." 

DoNascimento said that there was a huge shift between collegiate practices and high school practices.  

"Being a freshman on the team is way different than I expected. High school workouts don't really prepare you for your personal event, mine being the 800meter," said DoNscimento. "The practices are really about centralizing it to your event and preparing you for that, so I've really enjoyed the practices." 

On the opposite side, Graduate Student, Rachel Fleischer said that while her time at Southern and on the Women's team is coming to an end after this season, she's seen this program come a long way in her time at SCSU. 

"What I experienced on the team was a huge culture shift," said Fleischer. "Going from a weaker dynamic to a stronger dynamic, I've seen it change our practices, our relationships and our performance on the track. It has gotten way better over the years since I've been here." 

Fleischer also said that it has been fun watching people come up from freshmen to seniors with her on the track team.  

 While Fleischer is looking to have a record year as a senior, she is just as interested in what freshmen will shine as the season goes on.  

"I'm excited to see what they can do individually and how this team will do as a whole at conferences," said Fleischer.