WINONA, Minn. — Heading into the Winona State Invitational on Saturday, both the Saint Mary’s University men’s and women’s cross country teams had one specific goal in mind: to beat cross-town rival Winona State.

And with only two meets left on their schedule — the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships on Oct. 30 and the NCAA Regional Qualifier on Nov. 13 — beating the Warriors would be the perfect way to finish off the regular season.

Mission accomplished.

Although hampered by frigid temperatures and gusty winds, SMU achieved its goal on both sides, as the women placed second with 44 points, five points in front of WSU — and only nine points behind meet winner UW-River Falls — while the Cardinal men placed third with 79 points, well in front of the Warriors' 103 total.

"It's always a battle between us and Winona State — it was a big goal for both teams to beat them," said SMU coach John Skemp, whose women placed second in the three-team meet, while the men were third among four teams . "There were solid efforts on both sides. It wasn't an easy day to run, with the wind and soft surfaces, but everyone posted solid times."

Beating the Warriors was extra difficult for the SMU women, who were without one of their top runners — Alicia Hartung (Menomonie, Wis.) — who was on the sidelines due to an ankle injury.

Ellen Koranda (Blue Earth, Minn.) led the way for the SMU women, finishing in second place overall in a five-kilometer time of 19:59 — just 17 seconds off the pace of individual winner Amanda Kozicky of UW-River Falls.

Tera Bollig (Cambridge, Minn.) was right behind Koranda in fourth place (20:08), while Ashley Davis (Hugo, Minn.) filled in for the injured Hartung as the Cardinals’ No. 3 runner, posting a time of 21:06. Keri Drake (Sturgeon Bay, Wis. / 21:12) and Jenny Folgers (McHenry, Ill. / 21:42) rounded out the Cardinals’ top five.

On the men’s side, Andy Boisjolie (Austin, Minn.) crossed the finish line first for Saint Mary’s, posting an eight-kilometer time of 28:25, good for 13th place. Karl Hatteberg (Waltham, Minn.) was next in line for the Cardinals (29:33), while Pat Polasek (Glendale Heights, Ill. / 29:56), Aaron Raulin (Madison, Wis. / 30:25) and Steve Adams (Roseville, Minn. / 30:34) rounded out the top five.