WAVERLY, Iowa – The Gustavus women’s cross country team competed at the Dan Huston Invite at Wartburg Saturday and finished fifth of 13 teams.
“Weather and course conditions were difficult today,” said Head Coach Brenden Huber. “A lightning delay pushed the start times back, mud covered stretches on the course, and it was cold, windy, and rainy throughout both races. That being said, I thought we competed great. Times were slow, which we knew would happen, but we talked prior to the race about competing our best.”
Tierney Winter (Sr., Waterville) led the charge for the Gusties, finishing 12th in a time of 24:01.1. Kourtney Kulseth (Jr., New Richland) and Iliana Ramon (So., Fairmont) both ran well for the Black and Gold, finishing in 32nd and 41st, respectively, with times of 24:33.4 and 24:50.8. Mackinzee Miest (So., St. James) and Lily Engebretson (So., St. Paul) rounded out the top five with Miest finishing in 55th with a time of 25:13.6 and Engebretson finishing 58th with a 25:20.7.
“Everyone stepped up to the challenge and didn’t let the conditions influence their efforts,” said Huber. “We had Gusties executing wonderfully on both sides against a really deep field. I think we took another step forward today and gained confidence for the next step. I am really happy with our efforts.”
The Gusties will next be in action when they head to UW-La Crosse on Oct. 19.