Ausitn's Mason Wollersheim presses for the finish line in the boys varsity race of the Austin Invitational Tuesday afternoon at River Oaks Golf Course. -- Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com

It was a typical day for Austin cross country runners Mason Wollersheim and Andrew Baker.

They were battling back and forth until the end and it was anyone’s race the whole time. This time Wollersheim prevailed as he finished fifth in the six-team cross country invite at River Oaks Golf Club Tuesday and Baker took seventh.

Wollersheim trailed early in the race but caught Baker at the 3200-meter mark and he pulled away down the stretch.

“Andrew pushes me and he’s the one who’s got me as great as I am now,” said Wollersheim, a senior who finished with a time of 17:55. “He’s helped me a lot. I give props to him, he’s a good guy. Just yesterday we went back and forth in practice.”

Baker, a junior who finished in 18:04, was hoping for a better time than he ran on Tuesday but he said his rivalry with his teammate will keep pushing him throughout the season.

“It’s more of a competitive relationship, even though we’re still good friends,” Baker said. “We really try to top each other in practice, even though we shouldn’t. It’s fun and we’re good together.”

As a team, the Packers finished in third place as Geraro Ortiz-Sandoval finished 28th and Cole Prescott took 33rd.

AUSTIN RESULTS: Mason Wollersheim (fifth, 17:55); Andrew Baker (seventh, 18:04); Geraro Ortiz-Sandoval (28th, 19:55); Cole Prescott (33rd, 20:25); Caleb Asay (43rd, 20:47); Ben Walker (44th, 20:48)