UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO ATHLETICS
BUFFALO, N.Y. –The University at Buffalo cross country teams will play host to the 2018 NCAA Northeast Regional on Friday, November 10 at the Audubon Golf Course in Amherst, NY. The event begins at 11:00 am with the women’s 6K championship race and concludes at 12:00 pm with the men’s 10K championship race.
The women’s 6K championship race features 38 teams and 352 individual competitors. Columbia is the favorite to win the Northeast Regional as they are ranked first in the USTFCCCA NE Regional polls and 20th in the NCAA Poll. The Lions placed two runners in the top five of the Ivy League Championship including second place finisher, Erin Gregoire, as the team was crowned 2018 Ivy League champions after claiming first place in the event.
Syracuse will be another strong competitor at the event, as they are ranked 2nd in the northeast and 25th in the nation. The Orange woman were able to collect a second place finish in the ACC Championships as they has four runners finish in the top-15 in the field. The Orange will be led by senior Shannon Malone who placed fifth in the championship event.
Also looking for a strong showing Friday afternoon will be the Big Green of Dartmouth. The Big Green are ranked 3rd in the Northeast and 27th in the nation. During the 2018 Ivy League Championships, the Big Green placed five runners inside the top-20, and will be led by sophomore Glendora Murphy.
The UB women are led by senior Lauren Reyda who has been the Bulls top finisher in three races this season including a third place finish at the Canisius Alumni Invite and a ninth place finish at the Paul Short Invite. Freshman Riley Jones, who has been a strong competitor for the Bulls placing in the top-10 in two events this season, will look for a strong performance on Friday after a 91st place finish at the MAC Championships. Also running for the Bulls will be Christiana Berge, Brittany Fuller, Chardae Henry, Natalie Kurz, Meghan LaTuso and Saroja Rao.
The men’s 10K championship race features 37 teams and 345 individual competitors. Coming off a impressive performance at the ACC Championship where they placed five runners in the top-20, Syracuse is the heavy favorite to win the Northeast Regional. The 2015 NCAA Champions are currently ranked 12th in the USTFCCCA Coaches’ Poll. The Orange will look to be led by junior Aidan Tooker who took an eighth place finish at the ACC Championships. Tooker placed sixth at the Northeast Regional race at Audubon Golf Course last year.
Harvard is ranked second in the Northeast region, and will try to claim a top-two finish on Friday after a second place finish at the IVY League Championships that saw them finish just behind 25th ranked Princeton. The Crimson are led by junior Kieran Tuntivate who claimed an individual victory at the Ivy League Championships. Tuntivate placed 23rd in last year’s Northeast Regional event. Sophomore Hugo Milner will also be a force for the Crimson, as he took home a third place finish at the Ivy League Championships.
Iona is ranked third in the Northeast region after winning their 28th consecutive MAAC Championship with a score of 35. Iona impressively took home the first three finisher spots in that event, and were led by senior Liam Dee, who crossed the line in 25:01.0. Iona placed second in the region (behind Syracuse) in both 2016 and 2015.
For Buffalo, who is currently ranked 14th in the Northeast, it will be redshirt-junior Caleb Covell who will look to spearhead the Bulls’ efforts on Friday. Covell, who has crossed the line in first for team in every event this season, is coming off of a fourth place finish at the MAC championships that earned him first team All-MAC honors. Junior William Hilbert will also look to build off of his solid performance at the MAC Championships in which he crossed the line in 13th place, his best finishing spot of the year, on the way to second team All-MAC honors. Also competing for the Bulls on Friday will be Ryan Buzby, Thomas Flannery, Patrick Hazlitt, Matthew Mercer, Dan Muldoon, Christopher Nowak, Cal Puskar, Justin Van Epps and Oscar Vazquez.
Outside of the top-3 in the regional rankings but racing on Friday will be Boston University, UMass Lowell, Stony Brook, Cornell, Connecticut, Providence, Dartmouth, Albany, Yale, Brown, and Columbia.
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