WATERFORD, Conn. – The No. 14-ranked St. Olaf College men's cross country team posted a runner-up finish in the 35-team field that included seven nationally-ranked teams at the Connecticut College Invitational on Saturday at Harkness Memorial State Park.

Led by top-10 finishes from junior Kevin Turlington and senior Andrew Skemp, St. Olaf was second to No. 11-ranked New York University in the highly-competitive field with 95 points, finishing 15 points behind Violets. The Oles topped five other nationally-ranked teams, including No. 13-ranked Tufts University and No. 12-ranked Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which were both ranked ahead of St. Olaf in this week's U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national poll.

Seven of St. Olaf's nine runners to finish the race established new personal-best eight-kilometer times, including all five of the team's scorers. Turlington and Skemp both posted top-10 all-time times on the Oles' eight-kilometer list by placing seventh (24:21.9) and ninth (24:26.5), respectively, with PRs of at least 20 seconds.

Senior Sean Hartney also knocked over 20 seconds off his previous top time at the 8K distance while joining Turlington and Skemp in the top 15 in 14th (24:36.9). Juniors Ignatius Fitzgerald and Jack Deaver provided St. Olaf's other two counting scores in 30th (24:51.5) and 35th (24:53.3), respectively, with PRs of over 40 seconds each. Fellow juniors Gael Manzur Strandlund and Eli Doran also logged personal-best times.

While the team's top runners were competing in Connecticut, the rest of the Oles ran at the Jim Drews Invitational in West Salem, Wis., finishing ninth in the 20-team field. Junior Angelo Fiataruolo was St. Olaf's top finisher in Wisconsin in 48th (26:30.3).

After a week off, St. Olaf will host the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Championships on its home course on Saturday, Nov. 2 at noon.