UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's and women's cross-country team competes at the Hamilton College Invitational on Saturday, October 12. Women start at 11 a.m. and men start at noon.

Follow Along: Live results will be provided by leonetiming.

Last Time Out: The women's team ran a 6k and the men ran an 8k. Melita was the men's top finisher, taking third place overall out of over 150 runners. The women's team had three runners but did not compete as a team: Maria Stuhlman (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro), Priya Katwala (Huntington Station, NY/Walt Whitman) and Brianna Salvo (Ramsey, NJ/Ramsey). Salvo ran a 28:44.8, followed by Katwala, pacing a 29:28.9. Zachary Brown placed 42nd (27:51.2), Joseph Santiago 48th (28:04.1), Connor Pirkl  87th (29:43.5), Forest Martin 88th (29:58.0) and Evan Humphrey 93rd (30:18.7).

Stunting on Stuhlman: Stuhlman placed 30th out of over 120 runners this past Saturday in a competitive field, clocking in at 24:48.2. This was the first time competing in a 6k this season so far after running two 4k races on August 31st and September 14th.

Betting on Bennett: Bennett Melita placed third, making this his best race all season. He ran 25:32.6, pacing an incredible 5:09 mile. This is his fourth race of the season, and he places close to the top five or the top three. 

Last Fall At Hamilton: Utica took second overall last fall at the Hamilton 5k out of 10 teams. Melita placed first out of over 90 runners. He ran a dominant 15:51.6, pacing a 5:07. Anthony Leotta took ninth and ran a 16:49.7, followed by Tobias Jeralds with a 17:04.7. Jade Dening (Remsen, NY/Remsen) was the women's team top performer, placing seventh in the 4k with a 15:38.2, pacing a 6:18. Maria Stuhlman (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) placed 14th with a 16:04.8.

The Course: The Continentals host an invitational each fall on their home course, which has layouts that measure 5,000 or 6,000 meters for women's races and 8,000 meters for men's competitions. The course recently underwent extensive renovations in conjunction with the construction of Hamilton's new baseball and softball facilities as well as a soccer practice field. 

Up Next: The team travels to Glassboro, NJ, for the Rowan Border Battle on Saturday, October 19 at 11 a.m.