UB Men's Cross Country Announces Awards

BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo men's cross country squad announced its team awards for the 2008 season. Head coach Vicki Mitchell made the following presentations: Dylan Conway was selected as the Top Newcomer; Jacob Hagen earned the Most Improved Player Award; Ryan Zillmann received the Coaches’ Award; and Ryan Bloom was named Most Outstanding.

Dylan Conway

The Top Newcomer Award is presented to the individual student-athlete who distinguishes himself as the most talented new player on the team or the individual who accomplishes the greatest achievements as a first-year player. Conway appeared in all seven meets for the Bulls in his freshman season. Conway posted a season-best 8K time of 25:47.35 at the Bowling Green Falcon Invitational, finishing 18th among 108 runners. He also placed 46th at the Mid-American Conference Championships in 26:16.0,

Jacob Hagen

The Most Improved Player Award is presented to the student-athlete who has made the greatest stride or improvement in his performance from the previous season or from the beginning of the season to the end of the season. Hagen, selected as the Coaches' Award winner in 2007, had three top-10 finishes in his seven races in 2008. He turned in a season-best mark of 25:21.87 at the Bowling Green Falcon Invitational, finishing seventh overall. At the MAC Championships, Hagen finished 45th of 74 runners in 26:13.3, cutting 50 seconds from his 2007 finish.

Ryan Zillmann

The Coaches’ Award is selected by the head coach and is given to the student-athlete who best exemplifies the team virtues as defined by the head coach. The recipient is one who stands out in dedication, commitment, unselfishness and enthusiasm towards helping the team improve. Zillmann raced in six meets in 2008 after competing in just three in the 2007 campaign. He set a season-best 8K time of 26:06 at the Paul Short Invitational and finished in 44th place at the MAC Championships in 26:11.5.

Ryan Bloom

The Most Outstanding Award is given to the student-athlete who makes the most significant contribution to the accomplishments of the team through his skills and leadership. Bloom, the Top Newcomer in 2007, became UB’s first All-MAC First-Team honoree since 2002 when he finished fifth at the MAC Championships in 24:44.9, his season-best for 8K. Bloom also finished third at the Bowling Green Falcon Invitational (25:03.82) and had four top 10 finishes in six races this season. He also finished 34th of 239 at the NCAA Northeast Regionals in 33:00.4 for 10K.

The Bulls finished sixth of nine schools at the MAC Championships and 18th of 33 squads at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships. The MAC Championships finish was the team's highest since a sixth-place showing in 2002.