The University of Albany cross country course is not for the faint of heart.

Undulating hills. Scintillating turns. Narrow twists. Combine those challenges with a field of mixed Division I and Division III teams, and the meet at the UAlbany Invitational last Saturday can unsettle even the most seasoned of veterans.

Despite such adversities, the men's and women's cross country teams showed that they can deliver on the big occasion. The men placed fifth out of 21 teams, while their female counterparts finished 10th out of 23 scorers.

"We were so congested at the start that at the first turn a few girls fell," said Amelia Lundkvist '14. "I had to jump over someone to avoid going down myself."

Even more impressively, both teams defeated Division I powers en route to their finishes.

Senior leadership can often be the one-two punch that a team needs on the course. This was the case Saturday, with Chris Brown '12 and Marc Boutin '12 leading the men's team's charge with their 18th- and 20th-place finishes, respectively. Brown covered the eight-kilometer race (4.96 miles) course in 26 minutes and 7.8 seconds, 1.6 seconds ahead of his teammate.

Taylor Dundas '14 and Alex Kramer '13 were the team's second duo, placing 37th and 40th place in 26:34.6 and 26:38.8, respectively. Ed Colvin '14 took the final scoring spot for the Judges, crossing the line in 51st place with a 26:49.8 effort. First-years Jared Harrigan '15 and Greg Bray '15 showed that the team has great potential, as their first collegiate race yielded 89th and 101st with times of 27:35.0 and 27:48.8 respectively.

Kate Warwick '12, named the women's cross country UAA athlete of the week, continues to be a steady leader thus far this season, notching a 19:02.8 effort for 35th place in the five-kilometer (3.1 mile) race. Lundkvist and Miriam Stulin '15 were the next two Judges across the line, finishing 54th and 60th in 19:26.5 and 19:36.9. Victoria Sanford '14 took 90th in 20:26, while Monique Girard '12 placed 98th in 20:36.2, rounding out the scoring.

Brandeis has had a bit of an odd season in terms of racing, having pulled out of the Open New England Championship at Franklin Park last weekend, and Lundkvist said that it has had a bit of an effect on her training.

"I feel like when I race more often than not, I stay in the racing mode," she says. "Racing once every two weeks is kind of nice, but when we race only once a month, I don't really feel like I'm in the season. I guess the only time I've simulated racing are during tempo runs and workouts. Other than that, I just do my normal runs and that's it."

Despite the fact that she feels a bit out of the loop, the sophomore is optimistic about the future, most notably the University Athletic Association Championships on Oct. 29 in Chicago.

"The team is looking good," she said. "A couple of the girls are injured, but for the most part, we are healthy and doing well. I guess we just want to be healthy and ready to race."