ROCHESTER, NY - Utica University's men's cross country team traveled to Genesee Valley Park in Rochester to compete in the NCAA Niagara Regional. The Pioneers placed 6th as a team, setting a program record and securing a spot inside the top 10 for the first time. Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda-Fultonville) placed 5th overall as an individual, earning an at-large bid into the National Championship race. 

Melita crossed the finish line of the eight-kilometer course after 25:04.6, good enough for 5th overall. He earned the second at-large bid available at the event, as SUNY Geneseo placed each of the top three runners, followed by an NYU runner 1.9 seconds ahead of Melita. In a field of 189 runners, Utica placed all of its team-point-scoring runners inside the top 70 overall. Anthony Leotta (Dix Hills, NY/Half Hollow Hills West) was the second runner representing the orange and blue to cross the finish line, doing so after a time of 26:23.9. The final three team-scorers all finished within eight seconds of the 27-minute mark, with Tobias Jeralds (Canaan, NY/Chatham), Killian Bauer (Verona, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherill), and Timothy Jeralds (Canaan, NY/Chatham Central) placing 59th, 65th, and 70th overall, respectively.

Utica placed sixth as a team among 27 institutions. No team inside the top five had any of their scoring runners place outside the top 48, with Utica having the next lowest total among teams at 70. SUNY Geneseo claimed the title at the event, following each of the top three placements, followed by sixth and 10th overall finishes.

This concludes the season for the majority of the cross country team. Many among them will now look to begin the track and field season in just a few weeks. The lone exception, Melita, will now look ahead to next weekend when he competes in the NCAA Division III National Championship race. The event will be hosted in Spartanburg, South Carolina, with action set to begin at 10:00 am on Saturday, November 22nd.