Both the men's and women's cross-country teams adopted a unique racing style on Saturday: run as a team for over half of the race and then break out in the final mile. The strategy worked, with both teams finishing third in the Tufts Invitational, held in Grafton, MA.

The men's third-place finish matches their highest finish in a meet this year. Led by an outstanding performance from freshman standout Michael Page, the team knocked off NESCAC foe Middlebury College and nearby Salem State College, while finishing behind NESCAC rivals Tufts University and meet champion Williams College.

The top five men finished within forty seconds of each other, led by Page, who finished the 5-mile course in a blazing 27:45. John Stanton-Geddes '04 crossed the line second on the team and 17th overall in 27:52. Nathaniel Robinson '02 (28:10, 24th) and Alex Lenkoski '03 (28:18, 27th) continued their string of strong races, finishing third and fourth respectively. Carson Taylor '03 ran his best race of the season, finishing fifth on the team and 28th overall in 28:26.

First-year Andrew Schneider also ran an outstanding race on Saturday. Schneider ran 28:51 to finish seventh on the team, his best finish this young season.

"The 'run as a team' strategy worked particularly well for the men," said Head Coach Erik Nedeau. "[The men] will continue to improve as our younger runners feel more comfortable running towards the front [of the pack]."

The women also finished a respectable third at the meet, behind Williams and Middlebury, both ranked in the top five nationally. For the fourth consecutive week, Diana Rancourt '02 led the women and completed the 3.1-mile course in 19:28. Classmate Molly Burnett ran her strongest race of the season and crossed the line in 19:37. Alison Dimon '03 helped the women by finishing third on the team in 19:46. Emily Lobsenz '02 returned to racing after an extended bout with injuries to finish in 19:50. Erinn White '04 rounded out the top five with a time of 20:07.

The women also witnessed great races from Emily Dubinsky '03 (20:44), Jamie Newman '03 (20:52), Helen Dole '04 (20:53), and Courtney Jennings '01 (20:59).

Nedeau said that the new strategy had limited success with the women. "I was happy with how well the women executed the strategy," said Nedeau. "It was obvious that some runners excelled from this strategy and others struggled. I'm looking forward to devising a racing plan that is best for every runner and the team as a whole in the coming weeks."

Both teams will return to action on Oct. 13 for the Division I Open New England Championships. The next two cross-country meets will be at home on both Oct. 21st and 28th, as the Jeffs battle arch-rival Williams and other NESCAC competition.