Stevens Sweeps the 2017 Men's Cross Country Awards
The Empire 8 Conference coaches have voted and Stevens Institute of Technology has swept the 2017 men’s cross country yearly awards. It is the sixth time a school has swept the awards since the yearly awards began in 2003.
Runner of the Year: Greg Arabagian, Stevens
Arabagian was the individual champion at the 2017 Empire 8 Conference Championship with a time of 27:44 in the 8K event as he bested the field by 10 seconds. He became the second Stevens runner to win the conference crown. His season best 8K time of 25:54.8 came on Sept. 30 at the Saratoga Invitiational. Arabagian’s Runner of the Year award marks the second time a Stevens athlete has been honored as Michael Cahill received the honor in 2013.
Rookie of the Year: PJ Gunther, Stevens
Gunther was one of five rookies to finish in the top-20 at the conference championship, as he took second overall behind Arabagin with a time of 27.54.3. He was the fourth freshman at the NCAA Regional meet, as he placed 68th out of 290 runners with a time of 26:03. His personal best 8K time of 25.51 came at the Highlander Invitational on Oct. 7. It was the fastest 8K for a freshman in Stevens program history. Gunther is the second Stevens runner to earn Rookie honors, joining previous honoree David DeWan (2009).
Coaching Staff of the Year: Stevens
Head Coach Justin Wood and the Duck coaching staff earned the top-coaching award. It is the first time the Ducks have received the honor. Stevens claimed the program’s first conference championship title with a team score of 23. The Ducks had eight runners in the top-20, including five in the top-10 earning first-team All-Empire 8 honors. Stevens concluded their season with a 19th place finish out of 42 teams at the NCAA Regional Championship.
Sportsmanship Team
In addition to the top year-end awards, one member of each team was named that institution’s representative on the 2017 Men’s Cross Country Sportsman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete’s experience in conjunction with an institution’s educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportsmen.
The first and second team all-conference teams were announced following the conclusion of the championship.
Runner of the Year: Greg Arabagian, Stevens
Rookie of the Year: PJ Gunther, Stevens
Coaching Staff of the Year: Stevens Institute of Technology
First Team All-Conference
Name School
Greg Arabagian Stevens
PJ Gunther Stevens
Kyle Gallo Alfred
James Felice St. John Fisher
Phil Chapel Stevens
Tyler Wright Utica
Ryan Gioe Stevens
Dylan Peters Stevens
Tyler Deuschle Houghton
Bernard Daoust St. John Fisher
Second Team All-Conference
Name School
Leland Frink Utica
Tom Selvaggi Stevens
Mathew Roder Alfred
Nick Schug St. John Fisher
Adam Sisson Stevens
Chris Celecki Nazareth
Brian Attas Utica
Devyn Chase Nazareth
Dan Block Utica
Thomas Nafash Stevens
Sportsman of the Year
Name School
Kyle Gallo Alfred University
Jon Muller Elmira College
Dan Gilbert Hartwick College
Dominik Sullivan Houghton College
Mike Brown Nazareth College
Jarryd Wick Sage College
Bernard Daoust St. John Fisher College
Phil Chapel Stevens Institute of Technology
Lukus Becker Utica College