GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Saginaw Valley State University men’s cross country team competed this afternoon (Oct. 9) in the Michigan Intercollegiate Championships held in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The Cardinals ran against some very tough competition including Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, and Grand Valley State University. Saginaw Valley placed sixth overall with four runners in the top 50. Leading the Cards was sophomore Nick Ekel (Elsie, Mich. / Ovid-Elsie HS) who crossed the line tied with two Grand Valley runners, Anthony Witt and Jeff Nordquist, with a time of 25:54. Closely following Ekel were seniors Steve Genther (Laingsburg, Mich. / Laingsburg HS) (26:02), placing 24th, and Cortland Seaver (Freeland, Mich. / Freeland HS) (26:09), placing 27th overall. Rounding out the Cardinals top five were senior Derek Stone (Metamora, Mich. / Lapeer East HS), finishing with a final time of 26:40, and freshman Tyler Noble (Shepherd, Mich. / Shepherd HS) timing in at 27:27.

Saginaw Valley competes again on Saturday (Oct. 24) when they host the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) meet beginning at 11:00am.