St. Peter, Minn. – The Gustavus Adolphus men’s and women’s cross country teams are set to host their annual Gustavus Invitational Alumni Meet on Saturday, Aug. 31 in the Linnaeus Arboretum. Because of the surge of heat and humidity engulfing much of the state, Saturday’s men’s and women’s races have been moved up by one hour. The women’s 5k race will begin at 9:00 a.m. while the men’s race will start at 9:45 a.m. Participating in Saturday’s race will be Bethany Lutheran College and former members of the cross country programs.
The Gustavus women’s cross country team returns to the course with five letterwinners from a 2012 squad that won the MIAC Championship – the program’s first conference title since 2003. Although the Gusties lost Beth Hauer (Little Falls, Minn.) and Kate Eggers (Montevideo, Minn.) to graduation, the squad returns Rebecca Hare (Jr., Albany, Minn.) and Caitlin Fermoyle (Jr., Mendota Heights, Minn.) from its top group a year ago. Hare earned All-Conference honors last season after leading the team with a fourth place finish in 22:29.4 at the MIAC Championships. Fermoyle also took home All-Conference accolades with a fifth place finish in 22:33.0. Both runners were also All-Region performers, as Hare finished 13th (22:53.5) and Fermoyle placed 20th (23:12.6).
Of the five returning letterwinners on the men’s side, Gustavus will look to sophomore Leighton Becher (Woodbury, Minn.) and senior Joe Renier (Sr., Cambridge, Minn.) to set the tone. Becher is the top returner from the MIAC Championships last season, taking 51st with a time of 27:20.2. Renier is the top returning runner from the NCAA Regionals, placing 74th in 27:34.4.
Results for Saturday’s races can be found on the Gustavus Athletics website and here at Wayzata Results.