GRAND FORKS, N.D. - North Dakota State junior Heidi Peterson was the top finisher for the Bison women's cross country team in a dominant team performance at the UND Ron Pynn Invitational held at Ray Richards Golf Course on Saturday afternoon. Peterson placed second overall in the 5k race, crossing the line in a season-best 17:37.7.

As a team, NDSU claimed five of the top nine finishers in the event, and just 52 seconds separated the first and fifth NDSU runners in that pack.

The Bison claimed a Division I team title, topping North Dakota by a 17-41 margin. The University of Mary, University of Manitoba and Minot State all also competed.

Redshirt freshman Brecca Wahlund was the No. 2 Bison finisher and No. 3 overall, finishing in 17:44.8. Junior Maddie McClellan placed fifth in 17:55.9, sophomore Abbi Aspengren was sixth in 17:57.0, and freshman Tarin Lachowitzer took ninth place in 18:29.0 to round out the scoring for the Bison.

The solid all-around showing by the Bison was enough to have NDSU head cross country coach Ryun Godfrey pleased heading into The Summit League Championships in two weeks.

"We had a solid day. Only 20 seconds separated our first and fourth runner, which is really good," said Godfrey. "We're pretty much right where we need to be going into conference."

Of the nine NDSU runners who had previously run a 5k this season, eight recorded season-best performances on the afternoon.

North Dakota State will compete next at The Summit League Championships hosted by Oakland University in Rochester, Mich., on Oct. 27.