SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The University of Missouri-St. Louis men's and women's cross country teams opened its 2024 season on Friday evening at the UIS Prairie Star Invitational at the UIS Cross Country Course in Springfield, Ill. The men finished second with 65 points while the women were sixth with 188 points.
For the men,
Benjamin VandenBrink and
Jacob Warner led the way as each finished in the top 10. VandenBrink covered the seven-kilometer course in a time of 22:05.52 while Warner wasn't far behind in ninth at 22:12.12.
Toby Middleton and
Will Kaempfe came in 16th and 19th overall with times of 22:40.93 and 22:42.91 respectively.
Luke Stevenson,
Julio Cruz Jr. and
Caleb Leach rounded out the scoring. Stevenson came in 29th at 23:07.13, Cruz finished 34th with a time of 23:16.94 and Leach took 36th crossing the line at 23:23.95.
Kayley Heeter was the top finisher for the Tritons on the women's side as she finished the five-kilometer race in a time of 20:11.60.
Bridget Ragan wad 33rd at 20:24.90,
Ella Tynan finished 41st crossing the line at 20:37.83 and
Lily Wagemann was 74th at 22:56.91.
Ansley Casey and
Zoey Losch rounded out the scoring with times of 23:07.33 and 24.44.77 respectively.
UMSL returns to the course next Friday (Sept. 13) when it competes at the Illinois State Redbird Invite in Normal, Ill., and at the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Ala.
