Umass Lowell rules America East
Men's, women's teams capture indoor championships
BOSTON >> For the first time in program history, the Umass Lowell women’s track and field program was crowned the 2023 America East indoor track and field champions Sunday afternoon at the TRACK at new balance.
Edging second-place Ualbany by half a point, the women’s team finished the day with 196.5 points to hoist the trophy. The River Hawks picked up four individual titles as well as another relay team crown.
“The women’s meet was the most incredible performance I’ve ever witnessed. They didn’t give an inch and clawed to the victory.
It’s not easy to beat a team that’s won 13 straight. Ualbany is a great program, so it really had to be earned,” said UML head coach Gary Gardner.
The UML men were also champions, claiming back-to-back America East titles.
On the women’s side, Umass Lowell opened the afternoon with a pair of personal bests in the women’s triple jump. Juniors Alexandria Grasso (North Reading) and Wonuola Ashaju (Lagos, Nigeria) kickstarted the day with third and fifth-place finishes, respectively.
The women’s high jumpers matched the energy to go fourfive-six. Coming into a three-way tie at 5-foot-3, sophomore Fleur Balogh de Galantha (Grafton) landed in fourth, followed by junior Erin Jensen (Brimfield) and senior Sydney Lewis (Nashua, N.H.) in sixth.
Junior Martina Nkwantah (Pepperell) capped the afternoon in the field with a bronze medal in the shot put. Nkwantah tossed to a distance of 45 feet, 5.75 inches to secure her spot in third.
In the mile, graduate student Emily Sessa (Tewksbury) paced the group of four scorers with a gold medal thanks to a final time of 4:52.69. Senior Kenzie Doyle (Swansea) came in right on Sessa’s trail, taking second in 4:53.30.
Junior Hannah Doherty (Billerica) crossed next in fifth, clocking in at 5:08.78. Rounding out the crew, graduate student Sarah Burns (Billerica) brought in the final point of the event in fifth at 5:14.9.
On the men’s side, with 185.5 team points, the River Hawks blew away the competition. The River