Westfield, Mass. – The Westfield State men's cross country team finished in 18th place out of 26 teams at the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional Championship on Saturday morning. The Owls were led by senior Michael Maher (Attleboro, Mass.), who placed 102nd in the 174-runner field with a time of 28:35.7.
Junior Anthony Distauro (Milford, Mass.) was next to finish for the Owls, finishing in 120th place with a time of 29:35.2. Shortly behind him was sophomore Dan Botte (Norfolk, Mass.) who took 123rd place, crossing the finishing line at 29:52.1.
Williams College held the top three spots in the event overall. Senior Aidan Ryan (New York, N.Y.) ran the fastest time on the 8k course, recording a time of 24:25.8. He was eleven seconds ahead of teammate Elias Lindgren (Merion Station, Pa.) and twenty seconds up on their third place finisher Grahm Tuohy-Gaydos (Lakewood, Colo.).
Williams College also won the team event with a score of 54 points, followed by Middlebury at 68, and then RPI at 82.
This is the first time the Owls have competed in the new Mideast Regional, as the NCAA redrew the regions and the selection process prior to the pandemic.