Cross Country Weekly Release
9/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Bulls Stampede Competition at Home Meet
The University at Buffalo men's and women's cross country teams rolled to victories on Saturday afternoon in their lone home meet of the season, the UB Stampede Invitational as both teams finished first in the five-squad meets. Sunny skies and 60 degree temperatures proved to be ideal conditions for the runners along the course at Beaver Island State Park.
Sanders Leads Women to First Place
In the women's 6K race, the Bulls posted six of the top eight finishers, including the first four across the line. Katie Sanders led the Bulls as the only individual to finish under 19 minutes. The sophomore finished in 18:57. Freshman Gabby Leo was second in 19:04. Juniors Jackie Cavalluzzo and Caitlin Curry took third and fourth, respectively, with both crossing the finish line in 19:06. Rounding out the scoring for the Bulls were junior Sam Beim in sixth in 19:20, junior Emma Denton in eighth in 19:33, sophomore Becky Martin in 13th in 19:41 and freshman Christina Clarkin in 14th in 19:43. A total of 57 runners competed in the collegiate field.
Men Post Seven of Top Ten Finishers
In the men's 8K contest, the Bulls placed seven runners among the top 10 finishers to pick up the team championship. Sophomore Zach Ahart finished second in 25:07.9 with freshman Alex Saavedra third in 25:08.9. Senior Dylan Conway finished fourth in 25:16.0. Sophomore Mike Pressler finished fifth in 25:23.4 holding off Rochester's James Vavra, who finished sixth, also in 25:23.4. Rounding out the top 10 for the Bulls were sophomore Andris Goncarovs in seventh in 25:29.2, freshman Zach Krause in eighth in 25:42.2 and freshman Brandon Cowles in 10th in 25:58.8. A total of 58 runners competed in the men's race with California University of Pennsylvania's Aaron Dinzeo finishing first in 25:01.8.
Mitchell's Musings
Following the races, UB head coach Vicki Mitchell commented on her team's performances. "Its the first time we had the women's team together and have each group run strong and finish the last kilometer really hard," said Mitchell. "They ran a very even pace and were strong as a pack. It gives us an idea where we're at before going to the Paul Short meet." Commenting on the men's finish Mitchell said, "They planned perfectly. They worked strong and controlled and finished the last mile quite hard. For Zach Ahart this was a big breakthrough race and Alex Saavedra is one to keep an eye on."
Schedule Changes
Originally slated to send a few runners to this weekend's Harry F. Anderson Invitational at Roberts Wesleyan, the Bulls have decided to rest in preparation for the Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh on September 30. To replace the Roberts Wesleyan meet, several of the Bulls' B runners will travel to Cornell's Reif Invitational on October 21.
