LOWELL, Mass. – The UMass Lowell women's cross country team competed on two different parts of the east coast on Saturday, taking part in both the 2023 Pre-Nationals at Virginia and the Suffolk Invite in Boston. 

"Great day all around," said Head Coach Gary Gardner. "Easily our best performances of the season as a team."

At Pre-Nationals in less-than-ideal conditions, surrounded by some of the best competition in the nation, the women performed well in the Women's Orange 6K, finishing 13th as a team. The squad was led by sophomore Mary-Kate Finn (Nashua, N.H.), who crossed the finish line in 16th place overall with a time of 21:11.5. Senior Mary Yount (Northampton, Mass.) was the next River Hawk to finish, earning 41st place with a 21:51.7 mark. Sophomore Miana Caraballo (Methuen, Mass.) was just behind her in 74th, picking up a time of 22:19.2, while sophomore Kylie Marion (Baldwinville, Mass.) (22:44.0)and senior Hannah Doherty (Billerica, Mass.) (22:46.8) ran to a bang-bang finish in 101st and 103rd place, respectively. Graduate student Arianna Braccio (Nashua, N.H.) also fought hard in the 6K with a 24:16.4 finish for 162nd.

"Mary-Kate was awesome once again," said Gardner. "She's had an exceptional season thus far. The women ran better as a team and we are getting a few kids healthy. So, things are coming together well for conference."

Up north in Boston, a group of the younger women's squad athletes participated in the Suffolk Invite, finding much success. Freshman Emma Eagan (Danvers, Mass.) steered the River Hawk ship, earning 27th place with a time of 24:02. Freshman Lena Takahashi ran a great race, collecting a 24:16 mark for 36th. 

"Lena had her best race of the season," said Gardner. "She passed a ton of people in the last 3K."

Following Takahashi's lead was sophomore Mia Jones (Blacksburg, Va.), who was not far behind with a 44th place finish and time of 24:43. 

Next up, the River Hawks will compete in the America East Championships in Orono, Maine on Friday, October 27, where they will aim to win their fourth consecutive conference title.