GoldThe No. 20 Minnesota men’s cross country team was edged by No. 2 Wisconsin, 46-52, for the team title in the Jim Drews Invitational, hosted by Wisconsin-LaCrosse, Saturday in West Salem, Wis. The Golden Gophers were able to run at full strength for the first time this season as all-region performers Erik Grumstrup and Antonio Vega returned after missing the first six weeks of the season to injuries.

“We ran a controlled race, which is what we were looking for coming in,” said Golden Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia. “We wanted to work on keeping our pack of guys together and I’m pleased with our overall performance. It was good to see Erik and Antonio back out there.”

Senior Ryan Malmin paced the Gophers, finishing seventh and covering the 8-kilometer course in a time of 24 minutes, 27.6 seconds, the 10th fastest time in school history.

Vega posted an eighth-place showing in his first race of the season, after recovering from a hip injury. Vega was clocked in 24:30.2. Chris Rombough finished 10th in a time of 24:33.2, followed by Justin Grunewald in 11th in 24:47.8, Grumstrup in 21st in 25:02.5 and David VanOrsdel in 22nd in 25:02.6. Grumstrup was out with a leg injury.

Minnesota’s next competition is in two weeks when the Gophers play host to the Big Ten Cross Country Championships, on Sunday, Oct. 30.

Jim Drews Invitational – 8K Saturday, Oct. 15, 2005 West Salem, Wis. Team Results 1. Wisconsin 3-4-5-11-23-(31)-(37) 46 2. Minnesota 7-8-9-10-18-(19)-(32) 52 3. Wis.-LaCrosse 16-21-22-27-29-(40)-(42) 115 4. Iowa State 6-12-38-41-55-(58)-(80) 152 5. South Dakota St 1-15-33-49-57-(82)-(101) 155 * 23 teams competed Top 10 Individuals 1. Brad Lowery (South Dakota St.) 24:12.6 2. Tyler Sigl (UW-Platteville) 24:24.9 3. Christian Wagner (Wisconsin) 24:25.4 4. Ben Gregory (Wisconsin) 24:25.9 5. Simon Bairu (Wisconsin) 24:26.0 6. Kiel Uhl (Iowa State) 24:26.3 7. Ryan Malmin (Minnesota) 24:27.6 8. Antonio Vega (Minnesota) 24:30.2 9. Ryan Meissen (Unatt.) 24:33.0 10. Chris Rombough (Minnesota) 24:33.2 Other Golden Gopher Finishers 11. (10) Justin Grunewald 24;47.8 21. (18) Erik Grumstrup 25:02.5 22. (19) David Van Orsdel 25:02.6 35. (32) Ben Puhl 25:27.2 36. Luke Walker 25:28.2 45. Ben Hanson 25:37.1 56. Seijen Takamura 25:44.9 62. Eddie Kibira 25:50.3 72. Trent Riter 25:58.1 86. Todd Johnson 26:06.9 162. Severyn Claymore 27:10.4