St. Peter, Minn. – The Gustavus Adolphus men’s and women’s cross country teams will host their annual Gustavus Invitational Alumni Meet on Saturday in the Linnaeus Arboretum. The women’s race will begin at 10 a.m. while the men’s race will start at 10:45 a.m. and both races will be 5k. This year’s field of competitors has grown and will include Bethany Lutheran College, Martin Luther College, Saint Mary’s University and former members of the Gustavus cross country programs.
The 2013 Gustavus Invitational Alumni Meet saw the Gusties take the women’s team title in the 5k race. Gustavus placed four individuals inside the top five, including Caitlin Fermoyle (Sr., Mendota Heights, Minn.) who clocked a 19:39. Gustavus alum Nichole Porath ’05 took the individual crown by finishing in an impressive 18:54.
On the men’s side, it was the Gustavus almni that claimed the team title in 2013. Similar to the women’s side, they were able to place four in the top five. Yet it was recent grad Joe Renier ’14 who came in first individually, narrowly clipping Nick Ross ’11 with his 16:25 5k time.
The Gustavus women’s team returns to the course after finishing fifth in the MIAC in 2013. The Gusties return one of their top runners from last season in Fermoyle who has garnered All-Conference honors twice. Lauren Shurson (Jr., Chanhassen, Minn.) will also return to form a formidable top three for head coach Dale Bahr.
The Gusatvus men’s team will take the course after finishing seventh in the MIAC in 2013. The Gusties return two talented young runners in Thomas Knobbe (So., Des Moines, Iowa) and Evan Jones (So., Pella, Iowa) who finished first and second respectively for Gustavus in the NCAA Central Region Championships last season.
Results for Saturday’s races can be found on the Gustavus Athletics website and at Wayzata Results.