Men's Cross Country | 11/20/2023 9:57:53 AM
First-year runner Bennett Melita of Utica University became just the second student-athlete in Empire 8 history be named Empire 8 Runner and Rookie of the Year in the same season, as the Empire 8 Conference announced its 2023 Men’s Cross Country award winners on Monday, November 20. The individual awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.
Melita shared Runner of the Year honors with Cade Eells of Nazareth University. The Houghton University coaching staff, led by head coach Patrick Hager was named E8 Coaching Staff of the Year for the first time after winning its first Empire 8 Championship.
Melita enjoyed an incredible debut season for the Pioneers, winning three events, including the 2023 Empire 8 Championship by nearly 13 seconds in a personal-best and league championship record time of 24:54.0 over 8,000-meters on Oct. 28 from Parkview Fairways hosted by Nazareth. In addition, Melita was the individual race winner of SUNY Poly Wildcat Classic on Sept. 23 and Hamilton College Tune-Up on Oct. 21 and was runner-up at the James Earley Invitational, hosted by Westfield State University on Oct. 7 and season-opening SUNY Poly Short Course Invitational on Sept. 2. Melita was also the top E8 finisher at the Paul Short Run hosted by Lehigh University. He was a six-time Empire 8 Runner of the Week in 2023.
Melita became just the second student-athlete in Empire 8 history be named Empire 8 Runner and Rookie of the Year in the same season, joining Cohen Miles-Rath of St. John Fisher University, who accomplished the feat in 2011. Melita is also Utica’s second E8 Runner of the Year, joining Mitchell Marlow, who won in 2019 and the fifth E8 Rookie of the Year in program history.
Eells, a native of Ithaca, NY, was the top Empire 8 finisher at the 2023 NCAA Atlantic Region Championship at Houghton University on Nov. 11, placing 17th overall in a time of 25:00.9 over the 8,000-meter course, garnering All-Region accolades, while just missing out on qualifying for the NCAA National Championship. In addition, Eells was runner-up at the 2023 Empire 8 Championship on Oct. 28 in a time of 25:06.7 earned his third straight All-E8 first team accolade. Eells, the 2021 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year, set a personal best time of 24:53.6 over 8,000-meters at the Mike Woods Invitational at SUNY Geneseo on Oct. 14 and was a two-time Empire 8 Runner of the Week in 2023. Eells is the third E8 Runner of the Year from Nazareth, joining teammate Nathan Bowers (2022) and Brendan Epstein (2007).
The Houghton coaching staff, led by head coach Patrick Hager and assistant coaches Dillon Bell and Hayden Williamson was honored as the 2023 Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year for the first. Hager led Houghton to its first Empire 8 Championship on Oct. 28 and an 11th place finish at the 2023 NCAA Niagara Region Championship two weeks later. In addition, the coaching staff mentored six all-league selections, including first team picks Amos Bixler, Caleb Kasper and Zach Tucker.
The Empire 8 first, second and third team all-conference selections were determined at the championship meet on Oct. 28 at Parkview Fairways, hosted by Nazareth.
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2023 Men's Cross Country Sportsman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference 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.
2023 Empire 8 Men’s Cross Country Award Winners
Co-Runner of the Year: Cade Eells, Jr., Nazareth
Co-Runner of the Year: Bennett Melita, Fr., Utica
Rookie of the Year: Bennett Melita, Fr., Utica
Coaching Staff of the Year: Houghton, led by head coach Patrick Hager
2023 Empire 8 Men’s Cross Country All-Conference Selections
Empire 8 First Team
Amos Bixler, So., Houghton
Caleb Kasper, Sr., Houghton
Zach Tucker, Jr., Houghton
Cade Eells, Jr., Nazareth
Ethan Kenyon, Jr., Nazareth
Ethan Billings, Sr., St. John Fisher
Bennett Melita, Fr., Utica
Empire 8 Second Team
James Eustace, Jr., Houghton
Sam Lyon, Jr., Houghton
Antonio Benitez, So., Nazareth
Nathan Bowers, Gr., Nazareth
Connor Jackson, So., Nazareth
Riley Nash, Sr., St. John Fisher
Tobias Jeralds, So., Utica
Empire 8 Third Team
Ben Allen, So., Houghton
Ethan Glashauser, Sr., Nazareth
Anthony DiRubbo, Sr., St. John Fisher
Bogdan Rozvora, Gr., St. John Fisher
Jace Stuart, Fr., St. John Fisher
Zach Brown, So., Utica
Anthony Leotta, So., Utica
Empire 8 Sportsman of the Year
Yuner Sesmas, Jr., Alfred
Ethan Benedict, Fr., Hartwick
Caleb Kasper, Sr., Houghton
Zhaoyu Li, Gr., Keuka
Gabe Dauerheim, Fr., Nazareth
Chris Pellegrini, So., Russell Sage
Jace Stuart, Fr., St. John Fisher
Hayden Lohmann, Gr., Utica
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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