Men Finish Second, Women Third at UB Stampede Invite

Men's results

Women's results

Jacob Hagen

GRAND ISLAND, NY – Perfect running conditions paced the University at Buffalo men's and women's cross country teams to strong finishes at the 2009 UB Stampede Invitational held at Beaver Island State Park in Grand Island. The UB men finished second, one point shy of first-place Akron with 59 total points. The UB women took third in their field with 88 total points to Cornell's 20.

Temperatures in the mid-60s with clear skies and little wind enabled the runners to post some of the course's best times. In the men's race, Akron's Joe McCoy broke the course record by finishing the 8K distance in 25:29, seven seconds ahead of Dan Giza, representing the UBXC Alumni. The previous record of 25:48 was set last season by Binghamton's Erik Van Ingen.

Jacob Hagen was UB's top male finisher in 25:59, finishing fourth. Ryan Bloom finished 10th in 26:19 with Dylan Conway taking 11th in 26:20. Also finishing in the top 20 for the Bulls were Mike Gillis (North Tonawanda, NY/Starpoint) in 26:33 for 16th and Ryan Zillmann in 26:33 for 18th place. A total of 108 men's runners competed.

In the women's race, held at a distance of 5K, Cornell, ranked sixth in the Northeast Region by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, placed seven of the top 11 finishers. Genna Hartung won the individual race in 17:57.

Jackie Cavalluzzo

The Bulls were paced by Jackie Cavalluzzo as she crossed the finish line in 19:15 to take 18th overall. Katie Sanders (Rochester, NY/Spencerport) finished 20th in 19:19. Ellen Muster and Leah Wightman (Chatham, NY/Chatham) also placed in the top 30 for the UB women. Muster took 25th in 19:38 with Wightman in 30th in 19:57. The field consisted of 117 women's entrants.

In the team competition, the UB men, ranked 15th in the Northeast Region, were edged out of the team title by Mid-American Conference rival Akron by one point with Akron scoring 58 to UB's 59. Rochester was third at 64. Cornell scored 20 points to win the women's meet with Akron (44) and UB (88) taking second and third, respectively.

The Bulls compete at the Lehigh Paul Short Invitational, one of their toughest meets, on Friday, October 2 in their next outing.

Men's team scores: 1. Akron 58; 2. Buffalo 59; 3. Rochester 64; 4. St. Francis (PA) 90; 5. Signs of Weakness Club 109; 6. Rochester Inst. of Technology 183; 7. UBXC Alumni Team 185; 8. Niagara 219; 9. Daemen 281; 10. UB Club XC Men 287.

Women's team scores: 1. Cornell 20; 2. Akron 44; 3. Buffalo 88; 4. St. Francis (PA) 100; 5. Rochester 122; 6. Rochester Inst. of Technology 217; 7. Texas Lutheran 229; 8. Niagara 231; 9. UB Club XC Women 253; 10. Daemen 263.