MACOMB, Ill. - A very young women's cross country team showed depth and potential at Friday night's WIU Early Bird Invitational at Spring Lake Park. Sophomore Jennie Jamicich continued to build on last season's success, leading the Jaguars to the line in a time of 24:17 across the 6K course. Jamicich finished eighth overall as Summit League runners covered the top of the leaderboard.

"Jennie (Jamicich) and Jenny (Braun) were our top two runners the whole way," IUPUI head coach Scott Williams said. "Jennie Jam really put it together on her third loop and passed quite a few runners over the final 2K."

WIU's Beth Whalen took the individual tape in dominating fashion with a time of 22:49. IPFW put four runners among the top seven, while South Dakota State also had a representative among the top five.

Senior Jenny Braun was her usual solid self, posting a time of 24:39 while freshman Brittney McDuffee finished 15th in a time of 25:00.

Fellow freshman Tyffany Patrick finished 24th in a time of 25:51, while sophomore Julie Krouse came in five seconds later.

Three other freshmen - Jessica Polston, Michelle Williams and Alex Louden - finished 28th, 31st and 35th, respectively in their first collegiate meet.

"Even though our women's team isn't quite as deep as the men's and there's a little more of a gap from No. 3 to No. 5 and on down, we think they'll come along and close that gap as the season progresses," Williams said.

"This is the first time our women have ever run a 6K this early in the season, so we think it's really going to help us in the long run."

Plus, Spring Lake Park will be the site of the Summit League Championships on Oct. 27.

IUPUI's next action will be next Saturday when the Jaguars take part in the Indiana Invitational in Bloomington.