Colin Bennie’s first time running the Boston Marathon turned out to be a race to remember.
Bennie, a Syracuse University graduate and a member of the Orange’s 2015 cross country team that won the national championship, was the top U.S. finisher in Monday’s race.
Bennie ran the 26.2-mile course in 2 hours, 11 minutes and 26 seconds, good enough for seventh place overall. Kenya’s Benson Kipruto won the race in 2:09:51.
“I really couldn’t have imagined a better first Boston,” Bennie told WBZ-TV in Boston. “It turned out to be a great day. A litle bit windy, but honestly, pretty perfect running weather.
“It means the world to me,” Bennie said.
Bennie, originally from Princeton, Mass., was one of only two Americans in the Top 10. CJ Albertson, who led much of the race, was 10th in 2:11:44.
Another Syracuse runner, Paige Stoner, also ran well on Monday, finishing 18th overall among women in a time of 2:35:55. Diana Kipyogei, of Kenya, was the women’s winner in 2:24:45.
Auburn’s Chip O’Hara, a member of the Syracuse Track Club, was third in the men’s master’s division in a time of 2:25:36.
It’s been an eventful few days for runners from Syracuse University. On Sunday, SU grad Stephen Rathbun won the Utica Boilermaker 15-kilometer road race.