RESULTS: Alden Invitational (W) | Alden Invitational (M) | BU Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Lifting the curtain on the 2021-22 campaign, the UMass Lowell track and field team kicked off the season with a pair of meets Saturday afternoon, traveling to Boston University for the Haron Colyear-Danville Season Opener and to Brown for the Alden Invite.
 
"It was great to get the indoor season started," remarked Head Coach Gary Gardner. "We had some outstanding performances today and it was extra special with this being our first full indoor meets in two years."
 
At BU, graduate student Emily Sessa (Tewksbury, Mass.) had a record-setting night. Competing in the women's 3,000-meter, Sessa shattered her previous personal best and set a new UMass Lowell record in the event, crossing in 9:23.32 to finish 10th overall.
 
On the men's side, junior John Riley (Quincy, Mass.) had an impressive showing of his own, running a 14:02.26 pace in the 5,000-meter to register the third-fastest men's time in the event in school history.
 
"Emily set the school record in the 3,000-meter and John ran the third-fastest 5K male in school history," commented Gardner. "I can't wait to see what this team is capable of. Today was just a glimpse."
 
At the Alden Invite, the River Hawks saw a number of top finishers, including a pair of first-place times on the women's side. Graduate student Lauren Eddy (Grafton, Mass.) won the women's 300-meter with a final time of 40.72, mere milliseconds off her career-best mark. Following suit, junior Avery Leydon (Woburn, Mass.) claimed first in the 1,000-meter, nearly hitting her personal-best with a 3:00.41 finish.
 
Sophomore Alexandria Grasso (North Reading, Mass.) clocked an eighth-place time in the 60m hurdles off a personal-best 9.46.
 
In the field, senior pole vaulter Rachel Hill (North Reading, Mass.) cleared 3.40m to take second in the event. Sophomore Martina Nkwantah (Pepperell, Mass.) threw to a new personal-best mark of 12.36m in the shot put to place sixth. Joining her in the top eight, graduate student Jasmine McFarlane (South Yarmouth, Mass.) hit 12.20m to earn eighth.
 
On the men's side, the River Hawk's 4x400m relay team—composed of junior Michael Blake (Hudson, Mass.), senior Kashief Bogannam (Kingston, N.H.), sophomores Rodrigo Freitas (Billerica, Mass.) and Zachary LaLonde (Tewksbury, Mass.) —took second in the team event, clocking in just a second after the first-place squad at 3:24.13.
 
UMass Lowell's jumping contingent registered a pair of top-three finishes in Providence thanks to junior Evans Oduro (Kumasi, Ghana) and sophomore Maxwell Davis (Stoneham, Mass.). In the triple jump, Oduro hit 13.87m to earn second overall, while Davis cleared 4.00m for third in the pole vault.
 
Building on the success of the River Hawk fielders, sophomore Luis Cadime (Lowell, Mass.) hit a pair of career-bests in the shot put (15.29m) and the weight throw (10.19m). Cadime's 15.29m toss in the shot put also earned the Lowell native third in the event.
 
Meanwhile, graduate student Patrick Pang (Peabody, Mass.) claimed third in the weight throw for the River Hawks off a 16.02m toss.
 
UMass Lowell returns to action next weekend, Dec. 9-10, when they travel to Storrs, Conn. For the UConn Multi Event.