Top performances from classmates Paul Norton '11, who placed third out of 278 runners, and Marie Lemay '11, who finished 11th out of 310 runners, led the men's and women's cross country teams to top-ten team finishes at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth Invitational last Saturday. The men's team came in seventh in a field of 38 schools, while the women's team finished third out of 41 schools at the meet.

Underclassmen led the way for both squads, as four of the top five scorers for both teams were either rookies or sophomores.

"I was really excited. It shows that we have a really strong team," Lemay said. "We have a lot of good things to come in the future. It was a step in the right direction for a really good season."

The women's team recorded five of the top 42 finishes, with Lemay leading the way with a time of 18 minutes, 43 seconds in the five-kilometer course. A quick start to the race allowed Lemay to top her previous personal-best time by 30 seconds.

"[Coach John Evans] told me to 'get a good start so you don't have to weave your way through a lot of people,'" Lemay said. "So I tried to start kind of near the front pack and just work my way and kind of get into a good rhythm to go through the race."

Rookie Kate Warwick '12 followed with a 16th-place finish with a time of 18:51.

"My warm up felt awful; I didn't feel good at all [before the race]," Warwick said. "Then I ran the race and got to the end and I was like 'that was probably okay,' but I didn't think it was going to be as great as [18:51]. Breaking 19 [minutes] is a huge thing."

The Pisarik sisters, rookie Alyssa '12 and Beth '10, came in 28th and 42nd places respectively, while Hannah Lindholm '11 finished 38th.

On the men's side, Norton eclipsed his personal best by 45 seconds with a third-place time of 25:08 in the five-mile course. Norton kept with the lead pack throughout the race and was part of a three-man group that pulled away from the rest of the runners with two miles left.

He finished four seconds behind Northeastern University rookie Teddy Vrountas, who came in first place, and only two seconds behind University of Southern Maine junior Tyler Jasud, who finished second.

"[Norton's] someone that the team has recognized early on, even last year, as someone who's going to be a big contributor in the future, and he's kind of coming to fruition this year," captain Mike Stone '09 said. "He's been able to put himself in good positions at races and he has the fitness to back it up,"

Even with the career day, Norton said he is hoping to break the 25-minute mark. Still, he was pleased with the results of this weekend's race.

"It gives me the confidence that I can be in the mix at the conference and regional level," he said.

Rookie Chris Brown '12 faced an uphill battle on this flat course en route to his 31st place finish, second on the team. Brown fell behind early, stuck in the back half of the pack for most of the race, but recovered during the final mile to post a time of 25:46.

"I felt good at the end. I just kept getting faster and faster as the race went through, and I still felt good, so I was able to just keep going," Brown said. "My last mile was probably one of my fastest cross country miles."

Stone secured a 35th-place finish with a time of 25:49, and Zach Schwartz '11 and rookie Ryan Cheng '12 rounded out the scoring for the team, coming in 50th and 67th place respectively.

Both teams will compete in the Codfish Bowl at Franklin Park next Saturday at noon.