CLINTON, NY - Utica University's men's cross country team took a short trip to race in Hamilton College's Tune-Up Event. Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda-Fultonville) placed first among all runners, with Utica placing second in the team scoring. The event concludes the regular season for cross country, as the team's next event will be the Empire 8 Championships.

Melita took 1st overall in the race by a sizable margin. The course, which covered five kilometers, saw Melita finish after 15:03.1, exactly 25 seconds ahead of the 2nd overall runner, and 39.1 seconds ahead of 3rd place. Despite Melita leading the way, only one other Pioneer finished top-15, with Tobias Jeralds (Canaan, NY/Chatham) placing 13th with a 16:09.9 finish time. The 21st-24th overall runners all wore orange and blue as well, with Anthony Leotta (Dix Hills, NY/Half Hollow Hills West), Killian Bauer (Verona, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherill), Timothy Jeralds (Canaan, NY/Chatham Central), and Zachary Brown all finishing between 16:28.9 and 16:46.9.

Despite not winning the individual race, Hamilton's runners dominated the top of the leaderboard on their home track. With the exception of Jeralds at 13th overall, every runner that placed between 2nd and 20th overall represented the host college. The first runner across the finish line that was not a member of either Hamilton's or Utica's team was SUNY ESF's Aidan Watts, who placed 27th overall.

The Pioneers will begin their postseason next weekend at the Empire 8 Championships. The event will be hosted by St. John Fisher University in Rochester, NY. Races are set to begin at 10:00 am.