The No. 9 MSU women’s cross country team dominated the Roy Griak Invitational on Saturday, placing first in the 22-team competition hosted by the University of Minnesota at the Les Bolstad Golf Course.

Scoring 72 points to win the meet, MSU outdistanced second-place Arizona State, which finished with 107 points.

Winning the invitational was a product of hard work and a preface to upcoming meets, head coach Jim Stintzi said.

“We’ve been working hard all summer for this season,” Stintzi said. “This win gives us a little confidence, and chance to see how we will compete the rest of the year.”

Junior Michelle Carson finished first and won the individual crown in a record time of 20 minutes, 41.6 seconds.

Carson said she came into the race well rested and prepared to do her best.

“I went into this race easy, running less,” Carson said. “I wanted to preserve my energy so I could perform at my best.”

As a team, Carson says this win was big and well deserved.

“This was a very big win for the team as well as myself,” Carson said. “There were a lot of good teams and girls competing, and we won as a team running really well.”

Five of the top 23 finishers in a field of 196 were from MSU, which allowed them to win the team crown.

Junior Jamie Krzyminski added to MSU’s stable force, placing sixth with a time of 21:18.

Senior Cindy Durocher placed 20th with a time of 21:46, junior Sarah Pepera placed 22nd with a time of 21:48 and sophomore Natalie Stein placed 23rd with a time of 21:49.

The No. 15 men’s cross country team finished 14th in the 27-team meet at the Roy Griak Invitational. MSU scored 368 points, while Oregon took first place with 96 points.

Sophomore Chris Toloff led the team, finishing fifth in a field of 231 competitors with a time of 24:33, besting his 23rd place finish at last year’s invitational. Sophomore Steve Sherer was MSU’s next best finisher, placing 56th with a time of 25:14.

MSU will compete next on Saturday, Oct. 19 in Terre Haute, Ind., at the Pre-NCAA meet.