SARATOGA, N.Y. (September 29, 2018) – An 82^nd-place finish from junior Julia Cormier (Northwood, N.H.) and an 84^th-place finish by freshman Alana Thompson (Westampton, N.J.) led the way on Saturday for the Franklin Pierce University women's cross country team at the Saratoga Invitational, hosted by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The duo led three Ravens in the top 100 of the 192-runner field, as Franklin Pierce finished 13^th, out of 16 teams.

Cormier crossed the finish line in 19:44.6, while Thompson was right on her heels, at 19:45.1. Sophomore Daijanique White (Hartford, Conn.) added a top-100 finish as well, as she placed 92^nd, with a time of 19:56.1.

"Individually, the ladies ran very well," said head coach Zach Emerson after the meet. "Cormier, Thompson and White all ran significant personal best times in the 5k to lead the way."

Emerson went on to point out the personal bests were even more welcome than usual, as the Ravens were missing two regulars this week, with both sophomore Marissa Farago (Salisbury, Mass.) and junior Rebecca Zylak (Goffstown, N.H.) sitting out.

"With those two [Farago and Zylak] added into the mix, we have a scoring five that will be very competitive come championship time," continued Emerson. "Now it is all about getting healthy and finding a way to have everyone perform well on the same day."

Behind Zylak, it was 73 spots back to the next Raven in the field. Sophomore Rebecca Cooke (Nottingham, N.H.) finished in 165^th (22:03.4), while fellow sophomore Lauren Stankiewicz (Naugatuck, Conn.) rounded out the Franklin Pierce scoring five in 170^th (22:24.4). Sophomore Marisa Carbone (Scarborough, Maine) followed just behind, in 172^nd (22:36.1).

For the Ravens, it all added up to 402 points and a 13^th-place finish. St. Lawrence posted a score of 54 points to take home the team title, laying claim to a nine-point victory over Williams (63 points). Host RPI (67 points) rounded out the top three.

The Ravens will take the next two weeks off from competition and return to action on Saturday, Oct. 20, when they host the Bruce Kirsh Cross Country Cup in Hopkinton, N.H.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce cross country apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).