The Buffalo State men’s and women’s cross country teams competed in their final meet of the season, the SUNYAC championships at Brockport this past weekend. The men’s team finished the day in ninth place and the women’s team also finished in 9th place out of ten teams.

The weather was similar to what Buffalo State had faced in Oberlin two weeks before, but even worse.

“It was snowy and cold, very cold,” senior Kyle Foster said. “All the times were slowed down by it, across the board. But you don’t have a choice except to run through it.”

“The conditions were really bad,” senior Rosie Brown said. “It was snowing and raining and my feet were freezing. I started warming up twenty minutes early to make sure I wouldn’t pull anything.”

Foster led the Bengals, placing 39th out of the total 119 runners with a time of 27:01. Following him was Austin Becker in 52nd and Kevin Murray in 54th with times of 27:42 and 27:43, respectively.

Kat McNamara led the women’s team as she finished 38th out of the 118 runners with a time of 24:21. Brown finished second on the team and placed 72nd with a time of 25:30, followed by Sabrina Brooks (25:55, 77th) and Elizabeth Wall (26:00, 79th).

“I was really happy,” Brown said. “It was the best I’ve ever placed. Even though the conditions were bad, I felt really good. I have been improving every single race this year.”

Being the last race of the season, the senior racers will graduate and the cycle continues with the juniors stepping up and taking their role.

When asked, ‘what would you want Buffalo State to remember you by?’ both Foster and Brown had interesting answers.

“I want to be remembered as the fun, positive person,” Brown said. “I’ve consistently improved from my freshman year to my senior year.”

“That’s a tough question,” Foster said. “Honestly, when I got to Buff State, the team was very divided. There was the upper class and the freshman. Now we hang out with the freshman and interact, like watching movies together. I also always put my best foot forward. This year, I improved a lot. I did more than I expected to and I will continue this with indoor and outdoor track.”

The first meet for both men’s and women’s track and field will be Friday, Dec. 6 at Youngstown State University.

Email: [email protected]