Freshman Ellen Peterson and junior Sarone Paulzine led the Bemidji State University cross country program Friday night as the team opened the 2017 season at the Dragon Twilight in Moorhead, Minn. Peterson and Paulzine finished back-to-back in the 30th and 31st spots while four of BSU’s top five finishers were freshmen.

Eight teams participated in the meet Friday night with Bemidji State finishing seventh overall. Peterson was the top finisher for the program, running the 4K in 15:56.5 to finish 30th among over 85 total particiapnts. She topped her previous personal record for the 4K run by over two minutes, previously set in high school. Paulzine came in just behind Peterson with a time of 16:05.4 and a 31st place finish. Paulzine missed a personal best in the 4K run by four seconds.

Freshmen Brittny Hillstrom and Ashley Kinnard also finished in back-to-back positions, coming in at 35th and 36th, respectively. Hillstrom and Kinnard were separated by eight-tenths of a second, with Hillstrom finishing the run in 16:20.1 and Kinnard completed the run in 16:20.9. Fellow freshman Kristen Petron rounded out BSU’s top five finishers with a 17:07.0 mark and a 47th place finish overall.

The Beavers ended the night with an average time of 16:21.9.

University of Mary took first place as a team with five of the top six finishers overall during the run. The Marauders’ Alexis Zeis paced the field by taking first place with a time of 13:13.3.