BUFFALO, N.Y. - In a field stacked with NCAA Division I competitors, the Daemen College men's cross country team finished ninth at today's Canisius Alumni Invitational, compiling 247 points on a brisk afternoon in Delaware Park.

Senior Jeremy Rushok (Akron, N.Y./Buffalo State College) paced the Wildcats once again, finishing the 8K course in 26:50.7 to come in 31st place overall, out of a 116-entrant field.  Rushok's performance today marks the ninth-straight race that the senior has been Daemen's top finisher, and 10th time in Daemen's last 11 races dating back to the start of the 2014 season.

Sophomore Kevin Roginson (Amherst, N.Y./Williamsville North) was next in for Daemen, coming in 44th place with a time of 27:39.4.  Roginson has finished as Daemen's second scorer in each of the last four races.

Three Daemen runners placed between 56th and 59th to round out the Wildcats' scorers today, led by junior Matt Cregan (Syracuse, N.Y./Solvay) who ran his way into Daemen's top-five for the first time this season.  Cregan (29:03.6) was followed closely by sophomore David DelValle (West Seneca, N.Y./West Seneca West) who came in 57th place with a time of 29:04.1.  DelValle has placed in Daemen's top-five in all five races this season.  Freshman Joseph Tracy (Malone, N.Y./Franklin) edged teammates Timothy Poole (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) and Nigel Cordulla (Cheektowaga, N.Y./John F. Kennedy) to closeout Daemen's scorers with a time of 29:34.5; Poole (29:54.2) and Cordulla (30:19.2) finished outside Daemen's scorers, but placed 60th and 62nd, respectively.

Cornell University went low with just 25 points to sit atop the team standings of today's meet.  The Big Red placed all five of its scorers in the top seven.

The host Golden Griffins featured race-winner Chad Maloy who paced the field with his time of 24:47.0, but Canisius finished as the runner-up in the team standings.  Other Division I teams in competition today included University of Detroit Mercy, University at Buffalo and Niagara University.

Today's race marked Daemen's first outing since October 3 when the Wildcats competed in the Mike Woods Invitational.  It also represented the Wildcats' final tune-up in preparation for next week's East Coast Conference Championships.  The conference championship meet is set for Saturday, October 24 on the campus of Long Island University Post in Brookville, N.Y.