MEQUON, Wis. – The Mount Mary College Cross Country squad earned its first Top 15 finish of the year at Concrodia University-Wisconsin's Falcon Invitational Saturday. With a team score of 415, the Blue Angels took 14th place out of 19 total colleges in the team's first 6-kilometer race of the season.

"I was impressed by the grit and determination shown by our runners," head coach Eugene Miranda said. "It takes quite a lot of practice to learn pacing for races. So even though some of our runners ran at too fast a pace for the first mile, they pressed on to complete the race fighting off the painful effects of lactic acid. I am confident that as the season progresses, more of our runners will master the art of running at a constant pace."

While the previous two races Mount Mary attended were both five kilometers in distance, the Falcon Invite is the first of many 6K races the Blue Angels will attack this year. With the increased distance comes increased need for discipline, as Miranda mentioned several runners started at too fast a pace.

Junior Emily Barker (Oconomowoc, Wis.) took top honors among the Blue Angels racers, as her 24:57 time also placed her in 24th overall. Junior Vanessa Schellinger (West Bend, Wis.) maintained the most regular pace, finishing with a time of 28:42 and an 81st place finish.

Mount Mary will have the next two weeks off as it prepares for arguably its biggest meet of the year, the Roy Griak Invitational on the campus of the University of Minnesota. The Blue Angels will travel and stay overnight in Minneapolis Friday in order to be up and ready for the 9 AM start time that Saturday.