FAIRBORN, Ohio – The University of Dayton men's cross country team finished in third place despite a hot season opener at Wright State. Their competition was highlighted by two veteran runners, Bryce Conley and Calan Gizelbach, who finished in fifth and eighth place, respectively.

"I think we packed up really well," said Conley. "Everyone's looking solid. I think we definitely have a solid one through two. We've got room to improve – to close that gap on three through five… once we get there we'll be in good position."

Conley crushed his 5K PR by 28 seconds as he finished in 14:52.9 today. Gizelbach also beat his collegiate 5K PR by 25 seconds with his time of 15:01.2. Isaac Burkart, Owen Pukys, and Adam Jones were the next three Flyers to finish (and earn PRs). Burkart took 20th (15:08.9), Pukys earned 22nd (15:11.5), and Jones placed 23rd (15:12.2). James Mroczka was the top freshman finisher as he landed in 40th with a time of 15:32.5.

Head Coach David Dobson shared "I think on the men's side, we executed kind of what the expectation was. The hope was to kind of just set the table for the season and I think the men executed that well… I feel like they were diligent about doing little details that I asked them to do…"

The Flyers will be back in action on Saturday, September 16 as they run their first 8K of the season at the John McNichols Invitational!