PEORIA, Ill. – The Loras College men's and women's cross country teams returned to action Friday evening, competing at the Bradley Intercollegiate at Detweiller Park after a few weeks away from racing.

The No. 30-ranked men opened the meet with an 8k race at 5:15 p.m. and posted a strong showing against a largely Division I field. Isaac Bourne led the Duhawks with a second-place finish in 24:12.80, a personal record that ties the school record. Eric Rutherford followed in fourth place at 24:41.40, also a PR, now ranking ninth all-time in program history.

Six of the men's top seven runners notched personal bests. Ryan McGrath placed 15th (25:24.40), Aiden Ruiz 31st (26:27.30), Logan Hoger 40th (26:41.80), and Evan Schlichting 44th (26:45.90). As a team, the Duhawks finished third overall out of 23 programs and were the top Division III squad, trailing only Division I opponents Bradley and Saint Louis.

On the women's side, six athletes climbed into the program's all-time top 10 list. Keelee Leitzen led the way in 23rd with a time of 17:59.30, the second-fastest in school history. Bailey Vaughan was close behind in 24th, running 18:00.10 for third all-time.

Paige Jacobs (18:50.90), Lily Molloy (18:52.40), and Ivy Glendening (18:55.30) now rank fifth, sixth, and seventh all-time after finishing 51st through 53rd, respectively. Savannah Davis (19:37.00) claimed 10th all-time with her 72nd-place finish.

The women finished fifth of 23 teams, with only Division I or II programs Bradley, Saint Louis, Maryville (Mo.), and Truman State ahead of them.

"We were way ahead of last year, which is a really good sign," said head coach Ethan Adlfinger. "Not at full strength, but we trained through this week pretty hard. I'm happy to see the results they had despite not trying to back down for this meet."

Up next: The Duhawks head to Bethlehem, Pa., for the Paul Short Invitational on Friday, Oct. 3. The men will race at 11:15 a.m., followed by the women at noon.