Cross Country Teams Dominate at Jimmie Invite to Take Team Titles

North Dakota State completed its third-to-last regular-season meet in Jamestown, North Dakota. The University of Jamestown hosted teams near the Jamestown reservoir competing on an oddly beautiful fall day.

The women’s team was in command from the start and all the way to the finish line for the 6k. Redshirt freshman Madison LeSage from Howard Lake, Minnesota, took third place at an overall time of 22:06.04. This is one of her best times of the season.

Freshman Julia Link finished right behind her, claiming fourth place with a time of 22:10.2. Another freshman, Kasey Soderholm, placed sixth at 22:31.1.

To round out the top-10 for NDSU, Abby Hibbs clocked a 22:38.9 for eighth, and Mandan, North Dakota native Acey Elkins polished ninth place with a time of 22:45.0.

The NDSU women finished in first place with 30 points, and the Jamestown Jimmies placed second with 61 points.

Bison freshman Owen Johnson claimed the individual title on the men's side. The Harwood, North Dakota native won the crown with a time of 25:12.6.

Ivan Askim and Evan Liewer placed second and third; they respectively ran with times of 25:39.9 and 25:35.3, which were some of their best of the season.

Austin Wanner from Bowman County, North Dakota placed sixth at 26:11.0, and freshman Jacob Brown completed NDSU’s scoring at 26:36.6 to place 11th. The men ran away with the individual and team title in Jamestown.

The main takeaway from this meet is how young both NDSU cross country rosters are and the constant improvement of times throughout the season. The cross country season is short, but looking at the improvement of times is promising for the Summit League Championship coming up on Halloween.

Both NDSU cross country teams travel next week to Peoria, Illinois, to compete in the Bradley Pink Classic hosted by the University of Bradley.