Kim Rostvold

The Gustavus women’s cross country team wrapped up its 2009 season with a 9th place finish out of 26 teams at the NCAA Central Regional, which took place in Grinnell, Iowa. The Gusties were led by Kim Rostvold who earned All-Region honors with her 35th place finish.  The Gusties top six runners all finished  within one minute of each other.  The meet was won by Carleton College with a total of 95 points.  The Gusties, who totalled 237 points,  finished behind four MIAC squads (Carleton, St. Thomas, St. Olaf, and Bethel) and ahead of seven league squads (Hamline, Macalester, St. Ben’s, Concordia, St. Catherine, Saint Mary’s, and Augsburg).

Rostvold posted a time of 23:11.2 to lead the Gusties across the finish line.  Beth Hauer was just four seconds behind Rostvold as she placed 40th in a time of 23:15.2. The rest of the Gustie finishers included Vanessa Jones (49th – 23:35.2), Brooke Beskau (55th – 23:38.5), Danielle Burgmeier (58th – 23:42.2), Kate Eggers (63rd – 23:46.6) and Nicole Soiseth (122nd – 25:06.7).

The Gusties finished the season ranked ninth in the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Division III Central Region Poll.

Complete Results

2009 MIAC Cross Country Championships

The Gustavus women’s cross country team placed sixth out of 12 teams at the MIAC Championships on Saturday at the Como Park Golf Course. The Gusties, who compiled a team score of 136, were led by Kim Rostvold who finished 20th in at time of 23:55.  Carleton won the team title with a score of 65.

The Gusties ran in a tight pack during the race as their five top runners finished within 15 places and 90 seconds of each other.  Following Rostvold across the finish line for Gustavus were Danielle Burgmeier in 24th place (24:07), Vanessa Jones in 25th place (24:08), Brooke Beskau in 32nd place (24:16), and Kate Eggers in 25th place (24:24).

Coach Dale Bahr felt the team had a very good day.  He commented, “From the start of the race, they got out, into position and competed.”  He added, “We were able to run almost a full squad today, for the first time since the first meet of the season.  It helped that we had everyone there, even though we are still battling injury and illness. ”

The Gusties will compete in the Fall Finale at Saint John’s on Friday, Nov. 6 and then take part in the NCAA Central Regional on Saturday, Nov. 14 in Grinnell, Iowa.

Complete Results

2009 MIAC Cross Country Championships

The Gustavus men’s and women’s cross country teams will take part in the MIAC Championships this Saturday at Como Park Golf Course in St. Paul, Minn.  The women’s race is scheduled to begin at 2:15 p.m. with the men’s race to follow at 3:15 p.m.

Gustavus Women’s Preview
The Gustavus Adolphus women’s cross country team has battled injury and illness for most of the regular season and new head coach Dale Bahr is hoping that the squad is finally healthy and can improve on the Gusties’ seventh place finish at the MIAC Championships last season.

The Gusties sport a youthful roster with only three seniors on the team.  Leading the way for Gustavus will be sophomore Brooke Beskau  (Hastings, Minn.), who placed ninth at last year’s MIAC Championship. She was one of five Gusties to place within the top 58 at the 2008 conference meet.  Joining Beskau will be letterwinners Danielle Burgmeier (So., Plymouth, Minn.) (45), Megan Lundgren (Jr., Mankato, Minn.) (49), Vanessa Jones (Sr., Grand Forks, North Dakota) (50), Kim Rostvold (So., Grand Rapids, Minn.) (58), and Kathy Westergren (Jr., Duluth, Minn.).  Newcomers who have contributed to the top seven several times this season include Liz Hauer (Fy., Little Falls, Minn.) and Kate Eggers (Fy., Montevideo, Minn.).

Coach Dale Bahr will look to this solid group of returners to help put the team back in the top four in the MIAC, after placing outside the top four last season for just the third time this decade.

Gustavus Men’s Preview
The Gusties return four letterwinners from a season ago, all of who placed within the top 65 in the 2008 conference meet.  Mark Hartman (Sr., White Bear Lake, Minn.) is the top returning runner from a season ago after he placed 27th overall with a time of 26.38.   In addition to Hartman, Gustavus returns Nick Ross (Jr., Hastings, Minn.) (40), Anders Bowman (So., Plymouth, Minn.) (50), and John Kennedy (Sr., Coon Rapids, Minn.) (65).  The Gusties graduated All-Conference and All-Region runner Dan Foley (Minneapolis, Minn.) who placed fifth in the conference last season, clocking in at 25:34.

Others who have consistently placed in the top seven this season and will likely contribute at the MIAC Championships include Max Hanson (Sr., Montrose, Minn.), Jeremy Kuhn (Jr., St. Michael, Minn.), Mark Bartley (So., Blue Earth, Minn.), Alex Thornton (So., Byron, Minn.) and Adam Lund (Fy., Burnsville, Minn./Apple Valley).

Coach Bahr has been pleased with the progress of his young squad this season and feels that if his team can run relaxed an focused at the MIAC Championships that it can place in the upper division in one of the top men’s cross country conferences in the country.

MIAC Championship Preview (Courtesy of MIAC Office)
The 2009 MIAC Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championship will take place this Saturday, October 31 at Como Park Golf Course in St. Paul. The women’s race is scheduled to begin at 2:15 p.m. with the men’s race to follow at 3:15 p.m. The 2009 Championships are hosted by the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University.

Five of the top ten women’s teams in the Central Region will take to the course at Saturday’s MIAC Championships. A year after being edged by St. Thomas by two points for the MIAC title and beating Carleton by three points, Bethel enters the championship as the #1 team in the region and #14 in the nation. Carleton (#4 in the region, #20 in the nation) will pose a threat to the Royals for the team title, as will St. Thomas (5th in the region, 23rd in the nation). Other regionally ranked MIAC teams include St. Olaf at #7 and Gustavus at #10.

In 2008, the MIAC women’s team title was decided by one of the smallest margins of all time. In 2009, it could be the men’s turn for an extremely close team race. Of the five MIAC men’s teams ranked in the Central Region, none has set themselves apart from the pack. St. Thomas has the highest ranking (3rd in the region and 22nd in the nation), but will face fierce competition for the top spot in the conference. St. Olaf (5th), Saint John’s (6th), Augsburg (7th), and Hamline (8th) are all close behind the Tommies in the regional rankings. Last season, St. Olaf, Hamline, and St. Thomas were the top three finishers in the MIAC team race.

2008 MIAC and NCAA Division III Women’s Champion Marie Borner, a senior from Bethel, returns for her final MIAC Championship after winning the MIAC race last season by 45 seconds. Bethel junior Alex Potter and Carleton sophomore Simone Childs-Walker finished second and third last year and will likely pose the biggest threats to Borner. Other returning All-Conference runners from 2008 include: Concordia junior Hailey Brenden, Hamline senior Margot Branigan, Carleton senior Laura Roach, Gustavus junior Brooke Beskau, Saint Benedict sophomore Kaycee Knutson, St. Thomas senior Kelly Russ, Macalester senior Erin Lowrey, Bethel junior Kristin Mork, and Bethel senior Heather Jelen.

Seven MIAC Men’s All-Conference runners return from 2008, including St. Olaf junior Duboul Ruon, last year’s individual champion. Bethel senior Dan Greeno (fourth in 2008) has had a strong fall campaign and will compete with Ruon for the title. Augsburg’s Brent Haglund, Hamline’s Ian Bauer, Carleton’s Charlie Gamble, and Macalester’s Wade Ekstrom finished seventh through tenth last year and all four seniors should contend for first place at their final MIAC Championship. St. Thomas sophomore Ben Sathre, the Tommies’ top runner, is the final All-Conference returnee after he placed 14th in 2008.

MIAC Championships Web Site

Kim Rostvold

The Gustavus men’s cross country team finished 14th out of 27 teams at the Tori Neubauer Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse. The meet was held in West Salem, Wisconsin. Kim Rostvold was the top Gustie finisher as she placed 71st with a time of 23:34.4.

The rest of the top seven for Gustavus included:
Danielle Burgmeier (77th) with a time of 23:37.2
Vanessa Jones (83rd) with a time of 23:38.4
Elizabeth Hauer (106th) with a time of 23:51.9
Megan Lundgren (151st) with a time of 24:21.9
Nicole Soiseth (177th) with a time of 24:40.8
Abby Karl (193rd) with a time of 24:52.9

The rest of the Gustavus finishers included:
Lauren Nelson (262nd) with a time of 25:47.0
Karyn Peterson (290th) with a time of 26:15.6
Andi Eglinton (308th) with a time of 26:27.5

Danielle Burgmeier

Meredith Bache-Wiig (312th) with a time of 26:29.8
Cassie Brady (327th) with a time of 26:49.3
Natalie (346th) with a time of 27:04.2
Lauren Harden (349th) with a time of 27:09.2
Erin Eppler (350th) with a time of 27:10.3 05:26.7
Jennifer Hendricks (351st) with a time of 27:11.8
Cassondra Winters (369th) with a time of 27:32.8
Sarah Hofflander (402nd) with a time of 28:44.5
Kathryn Ofstad (415th) with a time of 29:21.9

Mark Hartman

The Gustavus men’s cross country team finished 21st out of 29 at the Jim Drews Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin at La Crosse. The meet was held in West Salem, Wisconsin. Mark Hartman was the top Gustie finisher as he placed 117th with a time of 26:41.

The rest of the top seven for Gustavus included:
Anders Bowman (119th) with a time of 26;41.3
John Kennedy (145th) with a time of 26:56.4
Nick Ross (208th) with a time of 27:34.4
Mark Barlety (217th) with a time of 27:43.7
Alex Thornton (249th) with a time of 28:02.7
Jeremy Kuhn (255th) with a time of 28:05.3

The rest of the Gustavus finishers included:
Max Hanson (260th) with a time of 28:08.5
Jon Kasprisin (320th) with a time of 29:00.8
Adam Lund (322nd) with a time of 29:01.5
Cristian Raether (330th) with a time of 29:09.1
362 12 Jeremy Bock (362nd) with a time of 29:36.0
390 13 Ian Gibbs-Hall (390th) with at time of 30:15.5
399 14 Steve Grimsby (399th) with a time of 30:25.9
402 15 Ben Whalen (402) with a time of 30:29.9
442 16 Andrew Nelson (442nd) with a time of 32:17.1
458 17 Eric Bly (458th) with a time of 33:59.4

WOMEN (4K)
1 Jen Lang MSU 15:45
2 Danielle Burgmeier Gustavus 15:47
3 Vanessa Jones Gustavus 15:48
4 Jill Brager UNATT 15:50
5 Katherine Anundson MSU 15:53
6 Jenny Hoese MSU 15:54
7 Kim Rostvold Gustavus 15:56
8 Elizabeth Hauer Gustavus 16:00
9 Kelsey Magnuson MSU 16:01
10 Meagan McConnell MSU 16:32
11 Megan Lundgren Gustavus 16:39
12 Lindsay Broughten MSU 16:43
13 Jennifer Duley MSU 16:46
14 Nicole Soiseth Gustavus 16:50
15 Lauren Nelson Gustavus 16:54
16 Haley O’Connell Gustavus 16:55
17 Abby Karl Gustavus 17:03
18 Ann Bergstrand Gustavus 17:05
19 Laura Palmer UNATT 17:10
20 Jackie Beckett MSU 17:20
21 Karyn Peterson Gustavus 17:26
22 Meredith Bache-Wiig Gustavus 17:28
23 Lisa Brown UNATT 17:29
24 Emily Wood UNATT 17:30
25 Andi Eglington Gustavus 17:33
26 Lauren Harden Gustavus 17:34
27 Natalie Lyster MSU 17:40
28 Melissa Clark MSU 17:44
29 Kate Reins Gustavus 17:57
30 Erica Roelofs Gustavus 18:04
31 Hannah Sieve MSU 18:06
32 Abbey Emmans MSU 18:06
33 Lauren Beukelman MSU 18:24
34 Kathryn Ofstad Gustavus 18:55
35 Cassondra Winters Gustavus 18:59
36 Brianna Jaeger UNATT 19:05
37 Dayna Sherman UNATT 20:12

Coach Dale Bahr commented, “The women who raced last year showed a slight improvement as a whole. We still have our best races “in us”. With injury, illness and running on tired legs, they are still coming and doing there best. We have a week off and that comes at a great time with how our training is planned.”

The Gusties are off next weekend and then compete in the Minnesota State, Mankato Invitational on Saturday, October 10.

The top seven finishers for Gustavus:
82 Vanessa Jones 24:39.6
93 Elizabeth Hauer 24:52.2
105 Megan Lundgren 25:08.8
117 Danielle Burgmeier 25:21.6
121 Kathy Westergren 25:23.7
(125) Emma Wilson 25:29.1
(128) Kim Rostvold 25:32.5

Complete Results

Vanessa Jones nears the finish line where she placed 41st. (Photo by Caleb Williams, D3sports.com)

Running without three of its top seven runners due to injuries and the flu, the Gustavus women’s cross country team showed excellent depth and registered a ninth place finish out of 16 teams at the St. Olaf Invitational on Saturday. Elizabeth Hauer was the top Gustie finisher as she placed 36th in a time of 24:28. University of Minnesota-Duluth claimed the team title with a total of 45 points.

The top six Gustavus runners all finished within one minute of each other and all placed in the top 68 out of 276 runners. Following Hauer across the finish line were Vanessa Jones (41st – 24:38), Megan Lundgren (46th – 24:44), Emma Wilson (54th – 24:58), Natalie Ristau (56th – 25:00), and Erica Hett (68th – 25:28).

The Gusties will run in the Roy Griak Invitational hosted by the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis next Saturday.

Complete Results

Megan Lundgren, shown here in the foreground, finished seventh with a time of 19:32.

A cluster of Gustavus runners at the start of the Alumni meet.

The Gustavus women’s cross country team hosted its annual Alumni Meet on Saturday morning on the west side of campus in the Arboretum. Fifty-five runners took part in the race, including eight alumni and 26 current members of the Gustavus team. Nichole Porath, who graduated in 2005, finished first with a time of 17:44. Beth Hauer was the top finisher for Gustavus as she crossed the finish line with a time of 19:07. The scores for the meet were Gustavus 35, Alumni 20.

The Gusties run next on September 19, at 11:00 a.m. as the team travels to Northfield for the St. Olaf Invite.

Results:

Nichole Porath: 17:44 – Alumni
Laura Edlund: 18:10 – Alumni
Kristie Tressel: 19:07 – Alumni
Beth Hauer: 19:12 – Gustavus
Jen Klover: 19:13 – Alumni
Vanessa Jones: 19:21 – Gustavus
Megan Lundgren: 19:32 – Gustavus
Danielle Burgmeier: 19:43 – Gustavus
Mel Macmillan: 19:44 – Alumni
Kathy Westergren: 19:53 – Gustavus
Emma Wilson: 20:14 – Gustavus
Natalie Ristau: 20:23 – Gustavus
Erica Hett: 20:29 – Gustavus
Cassy Brady: 20:38 – Gustavus
Lauren Nelson: 20:44 – Gustavus
Abby Karl: 20:48 – Gustavus
Nicole Soiseth: 20:56 – Gustavus
Hayley O’Connell: 21:00 – Gustavus
Karyn Peterson: 21:02 – Gustavus
Kim Rostvold: 21:05 – Gustavus
Ann Bergstrand: 21:07 – Gustavus
Erin Eppler: 21:26 – Gustavus
Andi Eglinton: 21:41 – Gustavus
Erica Roelofs: 21:41 – Gustavus
Kate Reins: 21:47 – Gustavus
Meredith Bache-Wiig: 22:10 – Gustavus
Molly Bousu: 22:36 – Alumni
Kathryn Ofstad: 22:59 – Gustavus
Kristin Kennedy: 23:04 – Gustavus
Lauren Harden: 23:12 – Gustavus
Sondra Winters: 23:18 – Gustavus
Sarah Hofflander: 23:21 – Gustavus
Stacey Decker: 23:39 – Alumni
Kayla Ricksham: 23:52 – Alumni

The Gusties seemed well prepared for the first competition of the season as they claimed 12 of the top 20 places. Beskau led the Gusties with her first place finish, while Kate Eggers placed third with a time of 24:41. Danielle Burgmeier was fouth in a time of 25:02, followed by Vanessa Jones in fifth (25:10), and Elizabeth Hauer in sixth (25:16). Also placing in the top ten for Gustavus was Megan Lundgren (who placed seventh with a time of ), Emma Wilson (who placed ninth in a time of ), and Erica Hett (who placed tenth in a time of ).

As a team the Gusties totaled 19 points, followed by the College of St. Scholastica (50), UW-Superior (88), and Northland College (102). Gustavus competes next on September, 12 as it hosts the Alumni Meet starting at 10:00am.

Results