LA CROSSE, Wis. – Sophomore Andrew Skemp rose up five spots on the St. Olaf College men's track and field team's all-time list, as eight members of the Oles' men's and women's programs ran in the 10,000-meter run at the Phil Esten Challenge on Friday evening at a chilly Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex.

Skemp moved up five spots from 10th to fifth on St. Olaf's all-time list by finishing ninth in 30:45.97 for the top finish of the night for the Oles. With race-time feels-like temperatures in the low 30s, Skemp was one of three St. Olaf competitors in the two men's heats, while five Oles competed in the two women's heats.

Skemp's time of 30:45.97 marked an improvement of over 30 seconds from his time of 31:17.29 from his third-place finish at the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships last May. Senior Kevin Montresor was 42nd (31:45.20), while first year Gael Manzur Strandlund was 56th (32:22.86) in his first collegiate 10K.

Sophomore Gracia Larsen-Schmidt paced the five St. Olaf women with a 34th-place finish in 39:37.93, breaking her previous personal-best time by over a minute. Senior Seneca Norvell shattered her previous PR by over 90 seconds with her 41st-place showing in 40:20.29. Senior Lauren Bitner (51st, 42:06.62), sophomore Cate Gleason (53rd, 42:36.05), and sophomore Abby Rowekamp (54th, 42:43.60) also ran in their first-career 10,000-meter races.

St. Olaf heads to Concordia University, St. Paul for the Holst Invitational on Saturday, April 22 at 10 a.m.