Skip To Main Content

Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
Moote Johnson Blatto at Canisius XC

Men's Cross Country Finishes Eighth at Canisius Alumni Classic

10/14/2023 3:23:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Mary Margaret Johnson, Assistant Athletics Communications Director | mmjohnso@daemen.edu
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Running in a pack throughout the race, the Daemen University men's cross country team posted an eighth place team finish out of 13 teams at the Canisius Alumni Classic on Saturday afternoon. Working on speedwork in the race today, the Wildcats' top six runners finished within eight spots in Daemen's final race before the 2023 East Coast Conference Championships next weekend. 

Senior Steven Blatto (Lancaster, N.Y.) crossed the finish line first for the Wildcats, placing 59th out of 142 runners with a time of 27:31.3. A trio of Wildcats finished right behind Blatto, with freshman CJ Johnson (Baltimore, Md.) finishing 60th at 27:31.6, senior Jon Moote (Wilson, N.Y.) placing 61st at 27:31.8 and sophomore Aidan Kincaid (Orchard Park, N.Y.) finishing at 27:32.1 to place 62nd. 

Senior Connor O'Brien (Hamburg, N.Y.) rounded out the Daemen scoring with a 64th place finish at 27:41.2, just ahead of senior David Schwinger (Buffalo, N.Y.) who placed 66th with a time of 27:41.7. 

Binghamton placed three of the top four runners to win the race with a team score of 30. Host team Canisius placed all five runners in the top 25 to post a second-place score of 41, while Buffalo finished third at 87. Detroit Mercy (120), Canisius Alumni (122), Le Moyne (164), SUNY-ESF (220), Daemen (230), Oswego State (300) and Buffalo State (308) rounded out the top-10. Roberts Wesleyan (308), UB Run Club (329) and Hilbert (391) were the final three teams in the meet.
  • Freshman Ethan Keating (Wooster, Ohio) was the seventh runner to cross the finish line for the Wildcats and placed 80th with a time of 28:19.0. Junior John Balch (Saranac, N.Y.) finished 81st with a time of 28:19.0. 
  • Senior Phil Ceccarelli (Hamburg, N.Y.) placed 93rd overall with a time of 28:57.6, just ahead of freshman Matthew Strasser (Alden, N.Y.) who finished 94th at 28:57.9.
  • Junior Nolan Robillard (Hamburg, N.Y.) finished 101st with a time of 29:17.4. 
  • Freshmen John Stopera (Rome, N.Y.) and Brad Tobin (Hamburg, N.Y.) finished at 107 and 109, respectively, posting times of 29:42.3 and 29:47.9.
  • Senior Laertes Cushing (Alfred, N.Y.) posted a time of 30:34.3 to place 116th. Graduate student Alexander Reynolds (Olean, N.Y.) rounded out the Daemen runners with a time of 30:57.6 to finish 122nd on the day. 
The Wildcats will race in the ECC Championships next Saturday in Rochester, N.Y. at the Matt St. James Cross Country Course.
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Follow the Daemen University cross country/track and field program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenXCTF.
Print Friendly Version