PROVIDENCE, R.I.—The UMass Lowell track and field team set a bevy of personal bests Friday night at the 2021 Ocean State Relays hosted by Providence College. A total 14 River Hawks set new career-best times at the Ray Treacy Track and Field Complex, with a number of runners making their first appearances in events.
 
"Overall, the weather conditions and competition were very good, and the kids took advantage of it to compete really well," said Head Coach Gary Gardner.
 
Graduate student Kaley Richards (Lowell, Mass.) continued her record-setting season for the River Hawks, crushing yet another school record with a first-place finish in the 5,000-meter race. This time, Richards smashed the UMass Lowell record set back in 2007 by Nicole Plante by almost 40 seconds, running to a career-best 15:54.02 mark. With her time, Richards now holds the 12th best time in the NCAA in the long-distance event.
 
"Kaley crushed the school record in 15:54.02, which is now the 12th fastest time in the NCAA this season and her first real attempt in the 5km," remarked Gardner. "Kaley sat right behind the leader for the first 4,000 meters, who did an awesome job running a consistent race. Then, Kaley crushed the last lap in 65 seconds and 31.8 for the last 200. It was just amazing stuff."
 
In the mile, senior Emily Sessa (Tewksbury, Mass.) snagged third with a career-best time, crossing the finish line in 4:45.24 to set a new UMass Lowell outdoor record. Sessa's 11 second cut also earned her the current third best time in the NCAA.
 
"Emily's 11 second PR puts her in range of an NCAA regional time in the 1500, which is a huge breakthrough for her. She's following in the footsteps of Kaley and Izzy. They just keep pushing each other to greater heights," said Gardner about the senior's performance.
 
Additionally, sophomore Allison Anusauskas (Auburn, Mass.) set a career-best in the mile, running to a 5:34.18 mark.
 
Representing the River Hawk sprinters, sophomore Chelsea Lynch (Amesbury, Mass.) took on the 400-meter dash for the first time in her collegiate career, earning third in a highly competitive field with a time of 59.83.
 
On the men's side, the River Hawks had a strong outing in the 800-meter event, with senior Cody Moran (Weymouth, Mass.) leading the pack with a third-place finish off a 1:52.34 mark. Additionally, four River Hawks set new personal-best times in the race, with senior Derek Holmes (Marshfield, Mass.), junior Christopher McCauliff (Lunenburg, Mass.), freshman Tanner Jellison (Wakefield, Mass.) and sophomore Timothy Champlin (Charlestown, Rhode Island) hitting career-best marks.
 
A trio of River Hawks earned top-10 finishes in the men's mile, with senior Daniel Cosgrove (Boxford, Mass.) pacing the group with a 4:09.93 finishing time for seventh place. Trailing Cosgrove by inches, graduate student Christopher Alfond (Ashby, Mass.) picked up eighth in the event off a 4:10.06 mark. Fellow graduate student Liam Kimball (Atkinson, N.H.) rounded out the UMass Lowell top-10 finishers in the mile, running to a 4:10.75 time for tenth in the event.
 
With their times, Cosgrove and Alfond set new personal bests in the men's mile, while sophomore William Cole-French (Hanoi, Vietnam) also earned a new career-best, finishing in 4:13.36.  
 
Senior Benjamin Drezek (Cumberland, R.I.) brought home second for the River Hawks in the men's 5,000-meter, setting a new career-best time of 14:22.17. Drezek's new time marks nearly a 60-second improvement from his previous fastest mark.
 
Joining Drezek in the 5,000-meter, freshman Tyler Sullivan (Walpole, Mass.), junior Jack Kalil (Milford, Mass.) and senior Ryan Gillooly (Stow, Mass.) also ran their fastest collegiate times in the long-distance event, with Sullivan finishing in 14:39.84, Kalil in 14:50.03 and Gillooly in 14:59.21. With a personal-best in just his second attempt at the 5,000-meter, Sullivan's time marks one of the program's best ever by a freshman. 
 
The sole River Hawk to take on the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, junior Joseph Walsh (Auburn, Mass.) had an impressive outing for his first collegiate appearance in the long-distance obstacle race, finishing in 9:39.77.
 
UMass Lowell returns to the track on Saturday, April 10 at the Merrimack Invitational in North Andover, Mass.