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MANKATO -- The Marshall boys and girls cross country teams turned in several strong performances at the Mankato East Invitational, with the Tigers recording multiple top-30 finishes and personal-best times in the 5,000-meter races.
The Marshall girls were led by senior Katelyn Leibfried, who placed second overall in 18 minutes, 10.8 seconds, finishing just behind race winner Gracie Randall of Owatonna. Leibfried recorded a personal-best time.
Freshman Jasmine Murphy also earned a top-five finish, placing fourth in 18:27.4. Junior Claire Kruse followed closely in sixth place with a time of 18:28.4, giving Marshall three runners in the top six.
Junior Landrey Graven finished 22nd in 19:27.5, while senior Kaitlyn Soupir placed 25th in 19:35.4. Junior Brooklyn Purrington crossed the finish line 36th in 19:55.6, followed by senior Jenna Sanders in 39th at 20:07.0.
Seventh-grader Callie Kletscher placed 51st in 20:47.4, and senior Madysson Hasert finished 59th in 21:20.5. Katelyn Leibfried, Murphy, Kruse, Soupir, Purrington and Sanders all recorded personal-best times, while Graven earned a season-best mark.
On the boys side, freshman Noland Munson paced the Tigers with a 12th-place finish in 16:13.8, also a personal best.
Isaac Leibfried placed 26th in 16:42.0, followed by senior Corbin Leibfried in 28th at 16:50.2 and freshman Griffin Leibfried in 31st at 16:53.8. All three recorded personal-best times.
Junior Gunnar Ruud finished 40th in 17:29.6, while freshman William Deutz placed 45th in 17:36.5. Sophomore Dale Smith crossed the line 48th in 17:43.1, and seniors Toby Wambeke and Xavier Rabaey finished 65th and 67th, respectively, with times of 18:38.1 and 18:38.6.
Marshall boys head coach Brian Leibfried said every runner on the boys team recorded a personal-best time at the meet. He credited the favorable racing weather and strong competition for helping the team perform well, while also praising the runners' focus and willingness to pass competitors and gain positions, particularly during the second half of the race.
Leibfried said the performances should give the team confidence heading into the championship portion of the season, beginning with the Big South Conference meet Tuesday before the section meet later this month.
With personal-best performances and strong finishes across both teams, Marshall heads into the postseason looking to build on the momentum from Mankato.