The Austin cross country teams ran for the first time in over a week, scoring a pair of near-the-middle team finishes at the Princeton Invitational Saturday in Milaca.

The girls team took home 11th place in a meet the Packers had never previously placed in, led by Katie Munk's 28th-place finish in a time of 16:21.

Natalie Bowers came in 63rd, followed by Megan Wilson (70) and Mary Clair Chao (73). Molly Thatcher's 103rd-place finish accounted for the team's fifth score.

"Katie continues to improve as the season goes along," said Austin coach Tony Einertson. "Natalie, Megan, and Mary Clair are running strong as a group. The girls' 11th-place finish is the first time we have scored in this meet, and to finish just out of the top 10 is a big boost to our confidence heading into the second half of the season."

The Packers run today at the Kato Invite in Mankato.

Austin's boys' team was again led by Carl Bauer, who placed 12th out of 190 runners in a time of 17:03.

"The boys continue to be led by Carl Bauer," Coach Einertson said. "The second group of boys continues to improve and we are looking for more improvement Tuesday when we travel to Mankato."

The girls team finished 11th out of 22 total teams in Class AA, while the boys were 16th of 29.

In Class A action, Lyle/Pacelli competed with six runners. Only two of the six ran in varsity competition, with Kate Boisjolie ranking 78th in a time of 17:06. T.J. Parlin placed 118th in the boys' race, clocking in at 18:40.

Shawn Pfeil ran the junior varsity race, placing 300th in 22;08. Sammi Jones was 108th in 19:11. In the freshman boys 4,000-meter race, Josh Gunderson came in 9th overall in 14:18, and Danny Rysavy was 57th in 15:49.

Lyle/Pacelli next runs Thursday at Zumbrota-Mazeppa.

Results:

AUSTIN GIRLS -- 28. Katie Munk 16:21, 63. Natalie Bowers 17:08, 70. Megan Wilson 17:16, 72. Mary Clair Chao 17:18, 103. Molly Thatcher 17:53, 137. Michelle Dammen 19:13.

AUSTIN BOYS -- 12. Carl Bauer 17:03, 77. Brandon Downs 18:23, 111. Isacc VanProosdy 18:53, 113. Kevin Groh 18:57, 120. Jordan VanProosdy 19:09, 142. Nate Moser 19:45.