HOOKSETT, N.H. – The UMass Lowell women's track and field team hit the road to Southern New Hampshire University on Monday afternoon for the Ed Daniels Invitational, after the meet was postponed this past Saturday.
"It was great to have a meet with great weather," said Head Coach
Gary Gardner. "The performances definitely matched the weather."
The field events kicked it off, and senior Fleur Balogh De Galantha (Grafton, Mass.) won the long jump event with a 5.30m mark. Senior
Olamide Bamgbose (Fitchburg, Mass.) was the other River Hawk competitor, finishing in eighth place with a 4.59m mark.
Graduate student
Alexandria Grasso (North Reading, Mass.) followed that up with a win of her own in the triple jump, earning a mark of 11.98m. In the discus, sophomore
Nhyira Nkansah (Chelmsford, Mass.) and Joyce Nabagereka finished back-to-back in sixth and seventh place, respectively, earning marks of 33.52m and 33.34m. Nkansah's was good for a personal best. In the hammer throw, junior
Julia Loescher (Peabody, Mass.) led the way in ninth place with a 38.50m mark, while Nabagereka competed and claimed 13
th with a 35.35m mark.
In the pole vault, the River Hawks gained another individual winner in sophomore
Úna Brice (Cork, Ireland), who cleared 3.25m for the win. Senior
Madison Sanchez (Amesbury, Mass.) finished tied for third with a 2.65m mark. Freshman
Avery Pitts (Willington, Conn.) got a win in the high jump at 1.57m, and junior
Paige Murphy (Billerica, Mass.) finished eighth with a 1.37m mark.
The shot put closed out the field events and Nkansah finished second to lead the squad with a 12.69m toss. Nabagereka finished in fifth place with an 11.29m mark.
The 3,000m steeplechase was the first running event for the women, and senior
Lena Takahashi (Holden, Mass.) finished third with a time of 12:44.08 as the lone River Hawk. Next, freshman
Meredith Feener (Walpole, Mass.) competed in the 100m preliminaries, claiming 10
th with a time of 13.23.
Both Grasso and Balogh De Galantha made the finals in the 100m hurdles, with Grasso earning the win with a personal-best 13.91 mark. Balogh De Galantha finished in third place with a time of 15.28. In the 1,500m run, the lone River Hawk was senior
Kaitlyn Stevens (Oxford, Mass.), who finished in fourth place with a time of 5:21.18. The 400m hurdles also saw just one River Hawk in sophomore
Bridget Geary (Lowell, Mass.), who claimed fifth place with a time of 1:08.97.
The 200m closed out the day for the team, and Grasso led the way once again, finishing second with an outdoor personal-best of 25.24. Feener and Murphy finished back-to-back in 11
th and 12
th place with times of 26.82 and 26.93. Murphy's mark was good for a personal best.
"Grasso had an outstanding day with two great hurdle races, another personal best in the 200m and just missed a personal best in the triple jump," said Gardner.