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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
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Jon Moote action 2023 Highlander Invitational

Wildcat Men Race to Second Place Finish at ECC Championship

10/21/2023 12:09:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Mary Margaret Johnson, Assistant Athletics Communications Director | mmjohnso@daemen.edu
ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Five Daemen University runners earned All-East Coast Conference honors as the Wildcats raced to a program-tying best second-place finish at the ECC Championships on Saturday morning. 

Daemen placed all five of their top runners in the top-12 to finish with a program-best team score of 38 on the day. Roberts Wesleyan claimed the team title for the ninth consecutive season, placing their top five runners in the top seven on the day, including the top three finishers, to earn a team-score of 18. Molloy (76), St. Thomas Aquinas (134), Staten Island (139) and Queens (152) were the final six teams. The Roberts trio of Owen White, Jackson Doran and Blake Kasper earned gold, silver and bronze in the race, with White pacing the field of 62 runners with a first-place time of 24:44.0.

Daemen senior Jon Moote (Wilson, N.Y.) posted a personal-best finish at the ECC Championships today, placing fourth overall with a time of 25:31.0 to earn First Team All-ECC honors for the second straight season and lead the Wildcat runners on the day.

CJ Johnson (Baltimore, Md.) continued his outstanding freshman campaign and became the second straight Daemen runner to earn ECC Rookie of the Year, posting a sixth place finish at 25:58.5 to earn First Team All-ECC honors. The Rookie of the Year is awarded to the first freshman to cross the finish line in the race. Sophomore Aidan Kincaid (Orchard Park, N.Y.) was the first Wildcat runner to earn the award at the 2022 race. 

Senior Connor O'Brien (Hamburg, N.Y.) and Kincaid placed eighth and ninth, respectively. O'Brien posted a time of 26:16.9 and earned his third straight Second Team All-ECC honor, while Kincaid posted a personal-best ninth place finish in the race with a PR time of 26:19.1 to earn Second Team All-ECC for the second straight season. Senior Phil Ceccarelli (Hamburg, N.Y.) rounded out the Daemen scoring with an 11th-place finish with a PR time of 26:34.5 to earn Second Team All-ECC for the second year in a row. 

NOTABLE
  • The Wildcats tied a program-high five All-ECC honorees today. Daemen had five all-conference runners at the 2022 ECC Championships. 
  • It was announced today that Ceccarelli earned the ECC's Elite 20 award for the third year in a row, awarded to the men's cross country runner with the highest GPA in the conference. He also shaved 23 seconds off his previous best 8K time of 26:57.9, set at the 2023 Highlander Invitational.
  • Kincaid shaved 17 seconds off his previous PR 8K time (26:36.1) set at the Highlander Invitational.
  • Freshman Ethan Keating (Wooster, Ohio) placed 15th with a PR time of 26:54.1. He set a PR for the fourth meet this season as he shaved 15 seconds off his previous PR (27:09.7) at the Highlander Invitational. 
  • Senior Steven Blatto (Lancaster, N.Y.) posted a 21st place finish at 27:54.4. Fellow senior David Schwinger (Buffalo, N.Y.) placed 23rd overall with a time of 27:56.4.
  • Sophomore Josh Trometer (Lancaster, N.Y.) and junior John Balch (Saranac, N.Y.) finished 25th and 26th, respectively, with Trometer finishing at 28:26.5 and Balch right behind him at 28:30.6.
  • Freshmen John Stopera (Rome, N.Y.) and Brad Tobin (Hamburg, N.Y.) and junior Nolan Robillard (Hamburg, N.Y.) finished 40th, 41st and 42nd today. Stopera led the pack with a time of 29:58.2, Tobin finished at 30:07.7, and Robillard crossed at 30:11.7.
  • Senior Laertes Cushing (Alfred, N.Y.) placed 46th overall with a time of 30:37.1. Graduate student Alexander Reynolds (Olean, N.Y.) rounded out the Daemen runners with a 47th place time of 30:41.1. 
UP NEXT
The Wildcats will race in the NCAA Division II East Region Championships in Hopkinton, N.H. on Saturday, Nov. 4. 
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.
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