Bulls Earn Podium Finishes at Canisius Alumni Classic

Saturday, October 19

Buffalo, NY

12pm

Canisius Alumni Classic

Bulls Earn Podium Finishes at Canisius Alumni Classic

10/19/2024 8:10:00 PM | Cross Country

BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo cross country team competed close to home on Saturday afternoon, participating in the Canisius Alumni Classic at Delaware Park in North Buffalo for the third consecutive season. In the fifth meet of the season and the final before Mid-American Conference Championships, the Bulls set numerous personal records while finishing inside the top three in both the men's and women's races.

The Buffalo men won the 8k race, with all five of their top five finishers in the top ten.

Jacob Brink was the first-place finisher in the men's field of 119 runners, with a new personal best time of 24:23.6. Junior Matt Gensel (4th, 25:07.2) and graduate student Evan Hilbert (5th, 25:12.7) both placed inside the top five. Freshman Collin Stafford (7th, 25:19.3) and senior Sean O'Brien (9th, 25:29.7) rounded out the Bulls' top five finishers. Stafford's time of 25:19.3 was a new personal record for the freshman, who has now joined the Buffalo top five for the second race in a row.

Following Stafford and O'Brien, the Buffalo men took six of the next seven spots, putting 11 Bulls in the top 16 finishers overall. Ty Fluharty was the 10th runner to finish, putting six Buffalo runners inside the top ten with a time of 25:29.7. Freshman Connor Domoy (11th, 25:38.7) and junior Luke Stoeffler (12th, 25:38.8) trailed, with all three Buffalo runners placing within ten seconds of each other. Gabriel Cornfield (14th, 25:42.9), Chris Turner (15th, 25:50.2) and Hayden Parks (16th, 20:50.50) all crossed the finish line within ten seconds of each other too. Aidan Norris was the 12th Buffalo runner to place inside the top 20 finishers with a time of 25:55.8.

"The men packed in a tight group with six in the top 10 finishers and 12 in the top 20 overall," said Program Director and Head Coach Vicki Mitchell. "Gensel and Hilbert ran up front early on and established the dominance of the Bulls in the race. Freshman Stafford had an excellent race and continues to learn more about the 8k distance to be a top-five scoring member. Today's race was a nice confidence builder for the men as we enter the final stages of preparation for MAC Championships."

On the women's side, the Bulls took third place of the eight competing programs. Four of Buffalo's top five finishers set personal records on the 5k course.

Lacey Danilovitz headlined for the Bulls with a seventh-place finish and a new personal best time of 18:12.5. Danilovitz has been Buffalo's top finisher in all four of the women's races she's competed in this season. Junior Bronagh Cassidy trailed Danilovitz by just six seconds (18:18.6) to take eighth place with a new personal best of her own. Eliza Medearis (14th, 18:40.0) and Vassi Klock (15th, 18:47.3) were the next two Buffalo runners to place, finishing within just seven seconds of each other. Both Medearis and Klock set new personal best times. Anna Recktenwalt rounded out the Bulls' top five by taking 20th and having a personal record of 18:58.7, putting five Buffalo runners inside the top twenty finishers.

"The women's team was again led by Danilovitz who ran an aggressive race early on," said Mitchell. "Klock and Recktenwalt ran their best races of this season so far and are building momentum back to their competitive levels. Several other women also had their best times on this course today, which is a great sign with less than two weeks to the conference championships."

All results from today's meet can be accessed here.

The Bulls will next compete at MAC Championships on Saturday, November 2nd in Muncie, Indiana.

For all the latest on UB men's and women's cross country, follow the program on X (@UB_XCTF), Instagram (@BullsTFXC), and Facebook ("Buffalo Track & Cross Country").

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