Roach won the outdoor Heps 880 championship in 1975, and placed second in the 600 at the indoor Heps and the 880 at outdoor Heps in 1975. He was fifth in the indoor IC4A 600 in 1975 and then went on to compete at the NCAA track championships, where he placed sixth in the 600 to earn All-America honors by the U.S. Track Coaches Association. Roach also contributed to the Big Red's successive indoor Heps mile relay titles in 1974 and 1975. He was third in the 880 at the outdoor Heps in '73. Roach set the school outdoor record in the 880, and ran the leadoff leg of the distance medley relay that set the school's existing outdoor record (9:40.4); he also ran a leg of the 3200- and 1600-meter relays that set Cornell records. He was Cornell's ECAC Merit Medal Award winner as a senior and was a finalist for a Rhodes Scholarship.
