NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s and women’s cross country teams both competed in the St. Olaf Invitational on Saturday. The men, highlighted by Andrew Stumbo’s (Sr., Boone, Iowa) first place finish, posted a team score of 95, good for fourth place. The women came in sixth place with 128 total points.
The race was loaded with talent on both sides, as the men and women each ran against three teams in the National Coaches Poll Top 25. Both Gustavus squads are ranked regionally with the men in eighth place and the women coming in at sixth in the North regional rankings.
Stumbo’s first place finish came at a time of 25:26.6. Henry Hinchcliffe (Jr., Austin) came in 18th place at 26:16.6 seconds. Garet Grant (Sr., Winona) finished third for the Gusties and 23rd overall with a time of 26:21.2.
“Andrew ran a beautiful race today,” said Head Coach Brenden Huber. “He has been on a different level this year and it has been fun to watch.”
St. Olaf took first place in the men’s race with a score of 46, followed by Wisconsin-La Crosse and Wisconsin-Eau Claire with team scores of 56 and 68, respectively.
The Gustavus women were led by Mackinzee Miest (Sr., St. James) who came in 19th overall with a time of 23:25.6. Right behind Miest was Elizabeth Donnelly (Sr., Langly, Wash.) in 20th place at 23:37.4 seconds. Coming in third for the Gusties was Evelyn Villalobos (So., Crystal), who finished with a time of 23:45.8, good for 24th overall.
Wisconsin La-Crosse finished first overall with a score of 42. MIAC foe, Carleton, came in second at an overall score of 56. The three remaining teams ahead of the Gusties were the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, St. Olaf, and the University of Minnesota, with scores of 47,113, and 114, respectively.
“The women ended up sixth, just behind St. Olaf and Minnesota, with a big gap from us to the next team, which definitely showed their deserving of being a regionally ranked team,” said Huber.
“It was a great meet for us overall,” added Huber. “There were a lot of great efforts from many of our runners today. “It’s great to be in a meet of this caliber again against some really good opponents.”
The Gusties will be back in Northfield next Saturday when Carleton hosts The Running of the Cows.