Missouri Southern men’s and women’s cross country teams are off to a strong start, opening the season at University of Arkansas.

Sophomore distance runner Eric Schott from Cape Girardeau, Mo., placed third on the 6600m course with a time of 20:29.8. Schott dashed across the finish line just over 30 seconds behind the lead.

Sophomore distance runners Adrian Todd from Springfield and Andrew Webster from Saint Peters, Mo., finished eighth and ninth.

The Lion’s men’s track team finished with 43 team points, the Razorback men completed with 18 points.

“We have the capability of being a very good team this year, but it has to come from them, and they have to work together as a team,” men’s Head Coach Tom Rutledge said. “They’re great guys, but they cannot run as individuals, they have to pull each other along and help each other.”

Women’s distance runner Kaitlyn Belisle, a junior from Enid, Okla,. placed sixth on the 4k course, with a time of 14:55.3, only a sixteenth of a second behind the leader.

Freshman distance runner Emily Harris, from Farmington, Mo placed 10th, followed by Senior Marlee Tegenkamp in 13th, and sophomore Lauren Baehr in 15th.

“They’re working very hard, I know that they have that focus in their mind, that these upcoming weeks are extremely pivotal in how they progress,” women’s Head Coach Patty Vavra said. “It’s a very important time of the year right now to be able to keep our mileage base increasing, but also keep our intensity. That’ll be very key for our success and development at this season progresses.”   

While the Women’s track team finished with 46 team points and the Razorback women ended with 16 points.

The Lions will leap back into action at home on Sept. 15, in the Southern Stampede.