The Buffalo State men’s cross country team ended their season on Saturday, Nov. 14 at the NCAA Atlantic Regional, hosted by SUNY Geneseo at Letchworth State Park.

Around this time last year, Western New York was dealing with the infamous “Snowvember” snow storm. This year, the weather was exceptional. It was a beautiful, bright sunny day with a high of about 40 degrees.

The team placed 37 out of 41 teams despite missing a number of runners due to injuries.

“Bad situations come in threes,” senior Ken Ryan said. “We had some injuries that were right after one another at the end of our season.”

Frustrated and determined to finish the season strong, the team pushed on with five runners at the start line (the minimum number of required runners).

Sophomore Mitch Rabold led the Bengals in the 8K course with a time of 29:09, finishing 199 out of 288 runners.

Ryan crossed the finish line next for Buffalo State, coming in 205^th place with a time of 29:27.

Next, junior Phil Giuga placed 223^rd with a time of 30:13. Following him, Benaleo Daniels crossed with a time of 30:43, good for 237^th place.

Freshman Greg Avila-Shah completed the team’s day, crossing the finish line and completing the scoring for Buffalo State with a time of 31:13, placing 249^th.

With the meet bringing an end to the season, it was a time for the seniors to reflect on everything they had accomplished and consider how far they’ve come.

Ryan reflected on his last meet as he finished the season on Saturday.

“The best experience this team has brought me is to be the best you can possibly be at whatever you are doing,” Ryan said. “You need to take time out of each day and put time into it, whether it be at school and having to study or running and having to stretch every day, you need to make it a point out of your day and work towards it.”

The team will pick up where they left off in January for indoor track and field.

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