WARRENVILLE, Ill. -- After a few weeks off, North Park Cross Country returned to competition with a Saturday meet at Wheaton's Gill Dodds Invitational.

Ali Karatas was the top finisher for the men's team, posting a time of 27:33.40. For the women, Erika Ver Beek was the top Viking runner at 30:40.20.

From Coach Bisrat Kidane

"I felt really good about how the Men's team competed. We are gaining confidence, which drives improvement and great performance. Ali did an excellent job of establishing himself up front for us. Gio [Martinez] showed a lot of confidence today. He's worked really hard and I think he realized today that he can race at the next level. Our Freshmen Kai Foote and Giovanni Del Carmen were terrific in their 6k debuts.

On the women's side, our freshman, Melanie Sorisho, really impressed me. It was her first ever 6k and I think she performed well. Junior runner Erika Ver Beek was also performed well. However, as a team, we still have a lot of work to do. There is no margin for error as we get closer to championship season and we need the full lineup on the course to compete at a high level."

Personal Records:  

Gio Martinez - 32:39.3