Elliot Fenske turned in another sterling individual performance as the Tigers finished fifth in a six-team field at the Rogers Invitational run Tuesday, Oct. 5, at the Fox Hollow Golf Club in St. Michael.
Host Rogers won the meet with 53 points, followed by Blaine 65, Benilde-St. Margaret's 68, St. Paul Central 91 and Delano 135.
Fenske ran the up-and-down, 5000-meter course in 16:24.3, six seconds behind winner Caleb LeClaire of Rogers.
"Elliot was closing fast at the end of the race and with the hills, that was a very solid time," coach Keith Revels said.
Carl Elmer was the next Tiger in the chute, placing 18th on 18:03. Ben Olson(22nd; 18:12), Dan Block (23rd; 18:12) and Adam Wallenta (29th) finished in a 14-second span. Lincoln Kirchoff ranked 32nd in 19:00 and Alec Wilson 35th in 19:13.
"We had five runners under 18:35 and that's a definite improvement for us," Revels said, "but to be competitive in the conference race we need to get some more guys into the 17-minute range. The clock is ticking."
One reason for optimism is the return of Chad Retterath from a leg injury. Retterath ran in the junior varsity race and finished second overall in 18:51.
"That would have made him No. 6 on the varsity today," Revels said. "Hopefully he returns to our top five next week."
Tuesday. Oct. 12, the Tigers compete in the Shakopee Invitational, their last test before the Missota Conference Championships slated for Tuesday, Oct. 19, at New Prague.
