Men's Cross Country | 11/16/2024 5:33:56 PM
Nine Empire 8 teams competed at the Niagara Regional, and Russell Sage College competed at the Mideast Regional, as part of the 2024 NCAA Cross Country Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 16. The Niagara Regional was held at the Fredonia State Cross Country Course in Fredonia, NY, hosted by SUNY Fredonia, while the Mideast Regional was hosted by Connecticut College.
A total of 10 teams (one per regional) will automatically qualify for the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships on Nov. 23. There will be 22 at-large teams selected by a committee that will be announced on Nov. 17. In addition, a total of 70 individuals will automatically qualify for the national championship. The top-seven runners not from a qualifying team will be determined the top-seven qualifiers per region. Those qualifiers will also be confirmed and announced on Nov. 17.
WOMEN
Empire 8 Champion SUNY Geneseo recorded the top team finish, placing second overall at the Niagara Regional with 36 points, while Nazareth was sixth with 225 points. NYU was the Niagara Region Champion with 32 points.
SUNY Geneseo senior Penelope Greene, the 2024 Empire 8 Champion, repeated as Niagara Regional Individual Champion, finishing five seconds ahead of the second place finisher, Keira Rogan of Hamilton College, completing the 6,000-meter course in 21:13.3.
A total of 11 E8 women earned All-Region honors, placing in the top-35 overall. Geneseo had five of the top 13 finishers. In addition to Greene, Lily Fowler-Conner placed fourth overall in a time of 22:01.8, while Ann Brennan was right behind in sixth (22:08.5). Gabrielle McCarthy (22:46.2 and Jillian O’Rourke (22:49.1) finished 12th and 13th, respectively.
Noelle Linenfelser of Houghton University, the 2023 Empire 8 Champion, finished 14th overall in a time of 22:51.9. Nazareth University junior Ella Impaglia placed 26th, while the Utica University duo of first-year Catherine Manna and Marlo Townsend were 31st and 34th, respectively. Caitlin Voloshen of St. John Fisher University rounded out the All-Region selections, placing 35th overall.
The Empire 8 results and regional split can be seen below:
Niagara Region Participants:
SUNY Geneseo - 2nd - 36 points
Nazareth - 6th - 225 points
Utica - 9th - 254 points
SUNY Brockport - 11th - 272 points
St. John Fisher - 12th - 278 points
Houghton - 14th - 307 points
Hartwick - 20th - 554 points
Alfred - No Team Score
SUNY Poly - No Team Score
Mideast Regional Participant:
Russell Sage - No Team Score
MEN
Empire 8 Champion SUNY Geneseo recorded the top team finish, placing second overall at the Niagara Regional with 30 points, while SUNY Brockport was right behind in third with 86 points. NYU was the Niagara Region Champion with 29 points.
SUNY Geneseo had three of the top four finishers on the men’s side. Senior Charlie Wilson was the individual race winner, finishing just under five seconds ahead of runner-up, teammate Alex Hillyard, completing the 8,000-meter course in 24:51.8.
A total of 15 E8 men earned All-Region honors, placing in the top-35 overall. Pierce Young of Geneseo was fourth overall, finishing in a time of 25:05.6. Utica University sophomore Bennett Melita finished ninth overall in a time of 25:13.8. He was one tenth of a second faster than tenth place finisher, Jonathan Zavala of SUNY Brockport.
Overall, Geneseo had seven All-Niagara Region selections, while Brockport had five. William Hall (11th), 2024 Empire 8 Champion Ryan Hagan (12th), Emerson Comer (16th) and Austin Schoen (17th) rounded out the All-Region picks for Geneseo, while Charlie Alekson (15th), Patrick Klinger (19th), Sean Killip (20th) and Jared Smith (22nd) also garnered All-Region honors for Brockport.
Houghton junior Amos Bixler (27th) and Nazareth senior Cade Eells (29th) also earned All-Region accolades from the Empire 8.
Niagara Region Participants:
SUNY Geneseo - 2nd - 30 points
SUNY Brockport - 3rd - 86 points
Nazareth - 8th - 224 points
Houghton - 10th - 255 points
Utica - 12th - 298 points
St. John Fisher - 16th - 395 points
Alfred - 19th - 557 points
Hartwick - 21st - 644 points
SUNY Poly - 22nd - 666 points
Mideast Regional Participant:
Russell Sage - No Team Score
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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