Sophomore
Chad Maloy of the Canisius College men's cross country team was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic
Conference Men's Runner of the Week for
his performance this past weekend at the Little Three Championships in Olean,
N.Y., the conference office announced on Tuesday afternoon.
Opening
the 2012 season at the Little Three Championship on Aug. 31, Maloy led the
Golden Griffin men to their seventh-consecutive team title en route to
defending his individual crown at the event against St. Bonaventure and MAAC
rival Niagara. The Griffs took home first-place honors with 16 points, followed by St.
Bonaventure (49) and Niagara (87).
The
reigning champion coasted into the top spot in the 5K-race with a time of
15:50, more than a 30-second lead over second-place finisher and fellow Griff Alex Simon (16:21). Maloy's victory
preserved the Griffs' steak of capturing the men's individual crown since the
2007 race.
"Chad has a rock-solid foundation beneath him from this
summer's base mileage, so I'm not surprised that he was able to come out of the
gate and run as strong as he did," said head coach Nate Huckle. "He is exactly the frontrunner we need this year to lead our very
talented, deep team into the postseason."
Maloy
is the first Griff male to earn the conference honor since 2009 when senior
Vasilis Kariolis placed second overall among 68 runners at the Monmouth
Invitational on Oct. 10. The sophomore is the fourth member of the men's
program to receive the conference honor since the awards started in 2006.
"Chad has been very diligent about doing all the little things
right so far this season, and we are very excited to see what he can do once we
get in a few months of speedwork in and turn him loose in late October," stated
Huckle.
The
Golden Griffin men and women will next compete in the National Catholic
Championships on Friday, Sept. 14 in South Bend, Ind. on the campus of the
University of Notre Dame. The women's race will open the day's race at 4:15
p.m. followed by the men's race at approximately 5 p.m.
