It was another record-setting morning for The Master’s University cross country teams at the Highlander Invitational in Riverside, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 14. The men placed second to NCAA Division I host, University of California, Riverside, while the women finished seventh, also against top NCAA competition. Both the men and the women recorded team-time school records over their respective distances.

On the men’s side, it was senior Brint Laubach who took the individual victory for the Mustangs with a time of 23:42 over the 8000m distance. Laubach’s efforts almost took down John Gilbertson’s school record of 23:40 which has stood for more than 12 years.

“With every step on the course, I pray that my teammates and I are only doing so with dependence on the Lord,” Laubach said. “Christ is our refuge and our strength, and he deserves all glory and honor.”

Fellow senior Daniel Rush joined Laubach in the top 10 with a personal record of 24:03 and the Mustangs only lost to host UC Riverside, who came in ranked 11th in the NCAA Division I West Regional rankings.

Other Mustangs to achieve a personal record included Zach Garey (25:00), Domenic Ghiorso (25:08), and Ty Clanton (26:24).

For the women, Hannah Fredericks led the way with a second-place finish with a time of 20:08 for 6000m. This was a personal best of over 30 seconds and lowered her own school record.

“Each time we step on the line, we are racing to proclaim the good news of God sending his one and only son to die so that all those who believe in him can be saved from their sin and spend eternity with him,” Fredericks said. “We hope that our racing allows a watching world to see Christ instead of ourselves.”

Senior Ellen Palmgren had a bounce-back race and finished with a near personal best in a time of 20:54. She finished in 19th place while Suzie Johnson (21:31) finished in 37th with another personal record.

Seventeen Mustang women achieved a personal best and moved up well over the last mile, passing many runners. Junior Erini Shaker passed 20 runners in the last mile.

The Mustangs will look to defend their GSAC titles at the Golden State Athletic Conference Cross Country Championships on Friday, Nov. 3 at Central Park in Santa Clarita.