WATERFORD, Conn. – The No. 26-ranked St. Olaf College women's cross country team finished 14th of 33 teams in interregional competition at the Connecticut College Invitational on Saturday at Harkness Memorial State Park.

In a field that included 16 nationally-ranked teams, including each of the top-five squads in the most recent U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national poll, St. Olaf took 14th with 456 points. The Oles were 12 points behind Brandeis University and 13 ahead of the No. 27-ranked U.S. Coast Guard Academy, while placing ahead of two top-15 programs.

Senior Lauren Walda paced St. Olaf with a 27th-place finish (21:31.49) for her fourth top-30 result at the meet in her career. Senior Grace Moeller was the second Ole to cross the line, doing so in 100th place (22:41.28).

St. Olaf's No. 3-5 finishers all posted the top six-kilometer times of their young collegiate careers. Sophomore Louisa Lamarre was just two spots behind Moeller in 102nd (22:42.30), while classmate Abi Lindquist was another five spots back in 107th (22:45.13). First year Anna Peikert was 159th (23:20.52) to account for the team's final counting score.

While St. Olaf's top group headed east, the rest of the roster ran at the Haunted Hustle on the Hill at home. The Oles won the team title with 24 points with a 46-point margin of victory ahead of Lakehead University. Junior Kathleen Madden led three Oles in the top eight in fourth (24:10.3), followed by sophomore Safiya Ait Ali in fifth (24:14.4), and junior Siri Erickson in eighth (24:46.6).

Next up for St. Olaf is the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Championships at Highland Golf Course in St. Paul at noon on Saturday, Nov. 1.