Mid-American Conference Championships
Cross Country Prepares for MAC Championships
10/28/2022 2:01:00 PM | Cross Country
BUFFALO, N.Y. – The University at Buffalo cross country team will travel to Athens, Ohio for this year's Mid-American Conference Championships on Saturday, Oct. 29. The women's 6K race is set to start at 11 a.m. with the men's 8K to follow at noon.
At the 2021 MAC Championships, the men's team finished in fifth place with 146 points while the women's team finished in 10th with 243 points.
MEN'S SIDE
Graduate student Ryan Buzby and junior Sean O'Brien have led the way for the Bulls this season. Buzby earned three top-10 finishes, including a victory at the Canisius Alumni Classic on Oct. 15, and he recorded a season-best 8K time of 24:39.2 at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invite on Sept. 30. O'Brien finished in fifth place at Canisius and in sixth place at the Harry Lang Invite on Sept. 3. Like Buzby, O'Brien recorded a season-best 8K time at Notre Dame, finishing in 25:09.3. The Bulls have also seen strong performances from senior Alex Hislop, sophomore Cory Demo, and junior William Marchant. The program will seek their first MAC title as well as first individual conference champion since 2013.
WOMEN'S SIDE
A standout group of freshmen have paced the Bulls. Paris Welker, Vassi Klock, Lexi Bernard, Bronagh Cassidy, and Brianna Urban all recorded season-best 5K times at Notre Dame. Welker finished 12th at the Harry Lang Invite and 19th at the Iona Meet of Champions on Sept. 16. Klock was UB's highest finisher at Notre Dame (55th) and Canisius (11th), along with a 22nd place finish at the Harry Lang Invite. Bernard recorded an 18th place finish at Canisius with a 5K time of 19:03.0. Like the men's team, the UB women's cross country team is seeking their first ever MAC championship, as well as their first individual conference champion since 2004.
MEN'S TOP 8K TIMES
- Noah Brightman – 25:15.1
- Jacob Brink – 26:06.2
- Ryan Buzby – 24:39.2
- Cory Demo – 25:15.5
- Ty Fluharty – 25:36.2
- Matt Gensel – 25:47.0
- Broden Haltiner – 26:22.0
- Evan Hilbert – 25:31.8
- Alex Hislop – 25:14.3
- William Marchant – 25:16.3
- Sean O'Brien – 25:09.3
- Brett Russell – 25:49.4
- Nicholas Taboni – 26:25.3
- Lexi Bernard – 18:56.9
- Meghana Caron – 19:35.1
- Bronagh Cassidy – 19:02.9
- Gabrielle Feber – 20:03.3
- Chloe Freeland – 19:18.7
- Vassi Klock – 18:27.3
- Allison Newton – 19:49.0
- Elizabeth Powers – 20:23.3
- Brianna Urban – 19:23.7
- Paris Welker – 18:51.4
For news and updates about the UB cross country teams, follow them on Twitter and check the official website of the UB Bulls.
