COLD SPRING, Minn. – Regan Niemi (Bemidji, MN/Bemidji HS) finished seventh and Katelyn Torrel (Gilbert, MN/Virginia/Rock Ridge HS) recorded a personal best as The College of St. Scholastica women's cross country team placed third at the Toni St. Pierre Invitational on Friday evening at River Oaks Golf Club.

The Saints scored 93 points in their first 6-kilometer race of the season, finishing behind Carleton's winning total of 26 and Macalester's 49 in the nine-team field.

Niemi joined the leaders from the start, positioning herself in contention early and helping draw teammates Torrel and Grace McCormick (Duluth, MN/Denfeld HS) toward the front of the field. At the halfway mark, Niemi held fifth place, roughly five seconds behind a lead group featuring Macalester's Ingrid Nordquist and three Carleton runners.

Niemi lost contact with the leaders shortly after halfway but remained the Saints' top finisher, crossing the line seventh in 22:54.2.

Torrel followed in 13th, improving her 6K personal best by 35 seconds to become the 16th-fastest runner at the distance in program history. Her performance helped fuel a strong second half for St. Scholastica.

McCormick finished 17th in 23:30.6, recording the third-fastest 6K of her career and her fastest in two seasons. Abby Wood (Circle Pines, MN/Centennial HS) placed 20th in 23:38, while Mollykate Hagen rounded out the Saints' scoring five in 39th at 24:24.1.

St. Scholastica sat fourth at both the 0.6K and 3K checkpoints before moving into third over the final three kilometers. The Saints turned a four-point deficit to Concordia-Moorhead at halfway into a 16-point advantage at the finish, a 20-point swing that secured their place among the top three teams.

Nordquist won the individual title in 21:58.7, finishing 18.8 seconds ahead of Carleton's Amelia Campbell, who clocked 22:17.5. Carleton's Lauren Tittel took third in 22:21.1. The Knights placed all five scorers in the top nine to claim the team title.

The Saints have next weekend off before returning to competition Oct. 3 at Carleton College for the Running of the Cows and Pre-Nationals meet.