River Hawks Post Strong Results Despite Rough Conditions at Paul Short Run
10/2/2026 12:47:00 PM | Women's Cross Country/Track & Field
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The UMass Lowell women's cross country team competed against stiff competition in challenging conditions on Friday morning at the Paul Short Run at Lehigh.
"It was a tough day with high heat and humidity, and we definitely struggled with it," said Head Coach Gary Gardner.
The open women's 6k got the day started, with junior Selena Wood (Abington, Mass.) leading the way for the River Hawks. Wood claimed 51st place out of 408 total finishers with a personal-best time of 22:45.8. Sophomore Gracie Richard (Weymouth, Mass.) followed in 71st place with a time of 23:06.1, while junior Haley Evans (Glastonbury, Conn.) earned a top-100 finish in 96th place with a personal-best time of 23:25.0.
Senior Lena Takahashi (Holden, Mass.) was next in 151st place, crossing the finish line in 24:10.4, just before sophomore Addyson Hunt (Wilmington, Mass.) finished in 157th with a time of 24:15.0. Sophomore Brooke Nedeau rounded out the River Hawk runners in 169th place with a time of 24:22.0 in her first career 6k.
Later in the day, the women's college gold 6k saw graduate student Mary-Kate Finn (Nashua, N.H.) shine, impressively finishing 13th overall out of 315 finishers with a time of 21:03.0. Graduate student Kylie Marion (Baldwinville, Mass.) was the next River Hawk to cross the finish line, earning 138th place with a time of 22:32.2, before junior Georgia Brooks (Groton, Mass.) finished in 164th place with a time of 22:43.8.
Sophomore Anna Fondakowski claimed 191st place with a time of 22:57.5, while Kate Leonard (Chelmsford, Mass.) ran to a 23:22.8 mark for 232nd place in her first collegiate 6k. Junior Paige McInerney (Acton, Mass.) (256th, 23:54.6), junior Salma Boukhtam (Quincy, Mass.) (258th, 23:56.4) and junior Lauren Long (Lunenburg, Mass.) (259th, 23:58.2) rounded out the River Hawk runners for the day.
"It was a tough day overall, with temperatures in the low 80s and high humidity," Gardner added. "Those are just conditions we aren't used to this time of the year. We ended up losing our top two men and two of our top seven women to the heat, so the results are kind of what they are. We just need to look forward to the next competition."
The team will now set its sights on the New England Cross Country Championships next Friday, October 9 at the Hopkinton State Fairgrounds in Hopkinton, N.H.
