INDIANOLA, Iowa (Sept. 2, 2022) – Giving some of the younger members of the team a chance to race early this season and grabbing an early peek at the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) championship course, the No. 19 Loras College women's cross country team opened the 2022 season at the Bill Buxton Invitational, hosted by Simpson College, and saw three runners earn top-ten finishes on Friday.

Senior Valerie Herbst led the way with veteran experience for the Duhawks, placing sixth with a time of 16:56.3 over the 4-kilometer course. Erin Phelan finished seventh with a time of 17:18.4 followed by Samantha Foht (17:23.2) and Frankie Chaidez (17:26.9) taking ninth and tenth, respectively. Rounding out the top-five for Loras was Becca Diddia in 11th (17:28.6) while freshmen Emily Jackson (17:38.3) and Lizzy Szynal (17:45.3) capped off the top-seven with 13th and 14th place finishes, respectively.

The Duhawks next race is set for Saturday, Sept. 10 at Aurora University, previewing the NCAA Division III Midwest Region Championship course the team will race in November. The women's race begins at 10 A.M. in Geneva, Ill.