Fort Snelling, Minn.—Spire cross country hit the ground running in Minnesota this afternoon as they proudly represented the University of Saint Mary at the 40^th annual Roy Griak Invitational, hosted by the University of Minnesota.

The No. 16 ranked Spire women battled to the finish, earning 11^th overall out of the 17 division I and division II institutions. Spire Sunset Showdown winner, Serenity Desrosier Larson, placed in the top twenty after a strong outing this morning. Serenity finished with a mark of 20:44.6.

Ava Klaassen would be the next USM finisher, coming in 94^th overall with a mark of 22:10.8. Teammate Mesa Casper would be close behind finishing with a 22:50.9 time. Graduate student Shelby Lingle and freshman Norah Watkins would complete the top five Spire women's runners. Lingle would finish at 23:01.8 with Watkins just behind her at 23:03.6.

No. 15 ranked Spire men saw senior Austin Howell claim 38^th overall out of the nearly 500 athletes with a final mark of 24:52.0.

Sophomore standout Derebe Carr would be the next USM athlete to cross the finish line in Minnesota right on the heels of teammate Howell, finishing with an official time of 24:55.2. Landon Englert would continue his freshman campaign with a 53^rd place official finish and a final mark of 25:09.5. Mohamed Elgossy and James White III would complete the top five Spire runners today, with Elgossy finishing a cool 25:10.0 and White just one second behind at 25:11.4.
 
For all official marks and results from the ultra-competitive 40^th annual Roy Griak Invitational, please visit Roy Griak Invitational - Sep 18 – 19, 2026 | Wayzata Results.
 
 
Coming Up…

Spire cross country will again be on the road next weekend to battle at the Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, Missouri on Friday, September 25^th with meet times slated to begin at 9:45 a.m. in Columbia.