De Pere, WI -- The Mount Mary University cross country team opened the 2013 campaign with an 8th place team finish at the Tom Barry Invitational hosted by St. Norbert College this weekend.  The result is an improvement upon the squad's 9th place finish a year ago.

Senior Emily Barker (SR/OCONOMOWOC, WI) began her final season with a team best time of 20:40 on the 5K course.  She placed 25th in the 120 runner field.  A pair of newcomers, Natalie Guyette and Hayley Hove, were next to cross the finish line for Mount Mary posting times of 23:07 and 24:25 respectively.

Mount Mary will be in competition again on September 14th when they take part in the Falcon Invite hosted by Concordia University in Mequon, WI.

Angels' Coach Eugene Miranda Comments:

"Emily Barker did an outstanding run to place 25^th. I am confident that she will go below 20 minutes for the 5 K this season.  Natalie (Guyette) and Hayley (Hove) are to be commended as they are the two fastest freshmen at Mount Mary since Emily Barker made her debut!

It is reassuring that as Emily completes her final season at Mount Mary, we have two promising freshmen who can carry us through the next few years. Danielle Sherrer and Vanessa Schellinger both improved over their last year's performance. Vanessa needs special recognition as she played soccer the previous evening in very hot and humid conditions. She did not fully recover from the exhaustive game and gallantly ran for her team with less than twenty four hours of rest."

Complete Mount Mary Results from Tom Barry Invitational: