Lancaster breaks Lyons' steeplechase record at NEWMAC Championships

Tessa Lancaster broke her own team record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on April 30, 2023 at the NEWMAC Championships at MIT, with a time of 11:36.54. (Frank Poulin/Courtesy of MIT)

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Mount Holyoke College sophomore Tessa Lancaster broke her own school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase by over nine seconds and finished third overall Sunday at the NEWMAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships at MIT, highlighting the Lyons' ninth-place finish at the meet.

Mount Holyoke also got points Sunday from two fifth-place showings by senior captain Emma Doyle (West Lebanon, N.H.) in the shot put and discus throw, and a sixth-place performance in the 4x400 relay. The Lyons scored 18 points at the two-day meet, placing ninth out of nine competing teams.

Lancaster (Mansfield, Mass.) finished the steeplechase in 11:36.54, slicing 9.41 seconds off of her previous team record time of 11:45.95, set one year ago at the 2022 NEWMAC Championships.

Doyle had a top effort of 34.54 meters (113'4") in the discus throw to place fifth out of 29 competitors in the event. In the shot put, Doyle's top mark of 10.94 meters (35'10.75") was also good for fifth place.

Other top-20 performances by the Lyons on Sunday included:

Sophomore Aria Mallare (Chicago, Ill.) took 13th place in the high jump, clearing the bar with a top effort of 1.42 meters (4'7.75").
Sophomore Greta Trapp (La Crosse, Wis.) won the first heat of the 1,500-meter run and finished 14th out of 29 competitors in the event, with a time of 5:12.72.
Senior Lucy Sternberg (Stonington, Conn.) placed 16th in the triple jump, with a top effort of 9.20 meters (30'2.25").
Senior Devan Ravino (West Kingston, R.I.) took 17th place in the 800-meter run, with a time of 2:28.11
Sophomore Kim Beaver (Agawam, Mass.) placed 18th in the 1,500 meters (5:24.15).
First-year Maya Evans (Topsfield, Mass.) placed 20th in the 1,500 meters (5:31.62).
First-year Kristina Busby (Freeville, N.Y.) placed 20th in the shot put (7.43 meters/24'4.5").
Teaming up for a sixth-place finish in the 4x400 relay, in a time of 4:30.36, were Ravino, Mallare, Trapp and Lancaster.