Kunkle and Poser finish in top five at Griak Invite

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's and women's cross country teams ran very well at the Griak Invitational on Saturday, hosted by the University of Minnesota.

The men's team finished fifth out of 26 teams with 168 points while conference foe UW-Eau Claire took the team title with 69 points. Individually, Sam Poser led the Pioneers and finished in fourth-place out of 296 competitors with a time of 26:04.2. Junior Joel Walden was the only other Pioneer to crack the top-15 and crossed the finish line at the 26:17.3 mark, good for 11^th-place. Junior Matt Smaga finished in 29^th-place with a time of 27:01.5, while sophomore Michael Peterson placed in 63^rd with a time of 27:51.3. Sophomore Matt Wubben rounded out the Pioneers top-five and finished the eight-kilometer course in 28:11.5.

On the women's side, junior Danielle Kunkle finished third out of 412 runners with a time of 22:36.13, as the Pioneers placed 19th out of 29 schools. Freshman Chelsey Heiden finished the six-kilometer course in 25:21.33, good for 95^th-place. Sophomore Kiera Depies placed 139^th with a time of 25:39.63, while junior Andrea Knutson crossed the finish line in 26:07.33. Junior Meleana Bennin rounded out the Pioneers top-five with a time of 26:11.28.

The Pioneers return to action on Friday for the Blugold Invitational at the Whitetail Golf Course in Colfax, Wis.