St. Ignace girls cross country team opened the season with a third place finish at the Inland Lakes Invitational Monday, August 25.

Onaway won the championship with 53 points, followed by Rogers City with 73 and St. Ignace 79.

Nicole Elmblad led the Saints with a sixth place finish in 22:49, followed by Grace Wheeler 11th in 25:02, Stacy Goldthorpe 16th in 25:47, Ivy Thurston 20th in 26:12, Kristen Olsen 21st in 26:48, Kayla Gustin 23rd in 27:30, and Sara Tafelski 24th in 27:47.

The St. Ignace boys did not meet the five-runner requirement to qualify for team scoring. Dan Belonga finished 36th in 24:08, Brandon West 37th in 24:09, and Joe Snowaert 40th in 24:29.

The Saints will compete at the Straits Area Conference meet in Sault Ste. Marie Tuesday, September 9.

St. Ignace will host their first cross country invitational Tuesday, September 30 at the Bridge View Park, beginning at 4:00 p.m.