Men’s Cross Country Places 19th at UMass Dartmouth Invitational

DARTMOUTH, Mass. – The Bridgewater State University men's cross country team competed on Sunday at the 50th Annual UMass Dartmouth Invitational. The meet featured teams from all three NCAA divisions.

Junior Kevin McBirney (East Bridgewater, Mass.) was the Bears' top harrier as he completed the eight-kilometer course in a personal-best time of 25:28.89 to place 27th out of a field of 299 runners. McBirney broke the 26-minute mark for the first time in his career.

Senior Wondu Summa (Burlington, Vt.) of Franklin Pierce University won the race for the second straight year checking in with a time of 24:04.72.

The Bears finished 19th in the team standings. Boston University captured the team title followed by Stonehill College in second place and UMass Lowell in third.

Sophomore Kyle Ackroyd (Charlestown, R.I.) was the next Bear to cross the finish line as he placed 70th with a personal-best time of 26:23.86. Senior Ryan Goldman (Franklin, Mass.) checked in with a time of 27:56.58 to finish 146th overall, while sophomore Alexavier Almeida (North Attleboro, Mass.) posted a personal-best time of 27:56.63 to place 147th.

Ackroyd not only broke the 27-minute mark for the first time in his career, but also the 28-minute barrier. Goldman’s mark of 27.56.58 was neary three minutes faster than his time  at the same meet a year ago. Almeida also broke the 28-minute mark for the first time.

The Bears are off until Saturday, September 30th when they travel to Keene, New Hampshire for the Keene State Invitational.