Flames place 7th, finish ahead of No. 20 Concordia
LINCOLN, Neb. – The College of Saint Mary cross country team turned in another outstanding early-season performance Saturday, finishing seventh in a strong 16-team field at a sweltering Woody Greeno Invite.
The Flames added a feather to their collective caps by finishing one spot ahead of 20th-rated Concordia to record a program first.
"During the last 2,000 meters the ladies were able to pick off five teams and beat the 20th-ranked team in the country,'' CSM Coach Derek Fey said. "We have never beaten Concordia in our program's history, so it was a banner day for us.''
CSM finished with 247 team points, just ahead of Concordia's 256. The University of Saint Mary (Kan.) won the meet by the slimmest of margins, 48-49 over runner-up Nebraska-Kearney. Sonoma St. took third with 96 points, led by overall champion Constance O'Neal (17:45.05).
College of Saint Mary had the third-best finish among NAIA schools, behind only University of Saint Mary (Kan.) and Kansas Wesleyan. The others ahead of CSM were NCAA Division II schools or junior colleges.
For the Flames, freshman Kara Muller led the way with a 31st-place finish in 19:33.34 over the 5,000-meter course. Classmate Carly Henderson was next in 20:09.36, good for 55th. Also figuring in the team scoring were Corinne Mead in 75th (20:35.72), Brooke Wigdahl in 79th (20:42.28) and Josie Karnik in 81st (20:45.49).
Rounding out the team were Mira Fosmer, 83rd in 20:46.98; Autumn Simons, 98th in 21:18.07; Yenifer Juan Jesus, 115th in 21:39.76; Eva Georgoulopoulos, 118th in 21:45.81; Natalie Briggs, 136th in 22:31.75; Peyton Bell, 140th in 22:37.34; Kiley Craft, 146th in 22:53.24; and Kaitlyn Thalman, 149th in 23:00.26.
The less-than-ideal racing conditions made for a challenge, but Fey said his athletes handled them well.
"I don't remember too many meets that were that humid and hot,'' he said. "We talked before the race about racing smart and finishing as strong as you can. They listen very well.''
The Flames are back in action on Sept. 28 at the Chile Pepper Festival in Fayetteville, Ark.