Post Classifieds
Ngabo finishes 3rd, will run in nationals
By Ryan Esguerra
On November 14, 2012
The Buffalo State men's and women's cross country teams closed out their seasons Saturday after
competing in the NCAA Division III Atlantic Regionals held at the University of Rochester.
The women's team placed 27th of 39 teams, and the men took home the highest team finish in program
history, placing 12th of 44 teams.
It was an individual performance, however, that put the Bengals in the spotlight. Freshman Alex Ngabo
earned an invitation to run at the NCAA Division III Championships in Terre Haute, Ind. with a third-place
finish in the 8K course (25:08).
With the high finish, Ngabo also became the first Buffalo State runner to earn All-Region honors since
A.J. Walsh in 2003.
"(Making nationals) was definitely one of the expectations I set for myself at the beginning of the season
and I even told my coach before the race that if I didn't make nationals I was going to be upset," said
Ngabo, who was named Buffalo State Athlete of the Week for his efforts.
A finish in the top 35 at nationals - which will be hosted by Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
- would make Ngabo Buffalo State's first cross country All-American since 1976. Though he saw
competing at nationals within his expectations, becoming an All-American would bring him a great sense
of pride.
"I would feel blessed and surprised because I did not set my goals that high," Ngabo said. "But now that
I accomplished one of my goals (making it to nationals), I have set another one to be an All-American
and hopefully I can achieve that."
With the championships set for 11 a.m. Saturday, head coach Dustin Dimit is eager for his freshman
runner to participate, and is optimistic for a good showing.
"We fly out Thursday so that he can run the course on Friday and be ready for Saturday," Dimit said. "If
he runs like he did on Saturday hopefully he can take top-35 and become an All-American."
From a team perspective, Dimit commented on the men's historic meet, as well as the women's team
falling short of expectations.
"We're happy with the guys - the 12th place finish was highest in school history so we are happy about
that," Dimit said. "The women finished just about where they did last year - we thought they should
have run a bit better though."
Freshman Bumkoth Jiak (26:36) and junior Kyle Pilecki (27:07) rounded out the top finishes in the 8K for
the men, finishing 53rd and 86th of 297 runners, respectively.
Covering the 6K course fastest for the women's team was junior Victoria DeStefano, who finished 97th
of 277 runners (24:04). Following her were freshman Kat McNamera (24:09) and sophomore Ana Rivera
(25:13), who placed 108th and 169th, respectively.
Despite the season being over for the women's team, hopefulness surrounds the young group of
runners. DeStefano sees a lot of success in store for the team in the coming years.
"I'm really happy with how my teammates and I improved each race. We improved physically and
mentally as a team," DeStefano said.
Despite none of the women making it to nationals, Dimit shares DeStefano's view that the team is
primed to go far in the coming years.
"We graduated one girl this year. We are really excited for what's coming in the future for this team,"
Dimit said. "The girls attitude throughout the season and their approach to practice improved as the
year went on and hopefully that will translate into better finishes for them."
Despite being the only member of the team slated to compete for a national championship, Ngabo
credits his teammates for improving his and the team's performance.
"It's not just about me breaking a new ground for the program, it's more of a team thing," Ngabo
said. "We all help push each other and everyone is taking pride in making this program better."
Ryan Esguerra can be reached by email at esguerra.record@live.com.
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