ST. PAUL, Minn. — If Granton Schneider (Moorhead, Minn.) was feeling any pressure when he toed the line for his first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Cross Country Championships, the Saint Mary's University freshman certainly didn't show it.
 
In fact, the Cardinal freshman thrived on the pressure.
 
Schneider shaved seven seconds off his previous best eight-kilometer time, breaking the tape in 26:21.1 to place 22nd overall and lead SMU to a 10th place showing. On the women's side, Kendra Klobe (Glencoe, Minn.) — also making her inaugural conference championships appearance — led the Cardinals' charge, clocking a six-kilometer time of 26:09.3 in leading the Cardinals to a 10th-place finish.
 
Gabriel Bickerstaff (Rollingstone, Minn.) chipped in a time of 28:38.4 for the SMU men, with Sam Morris (Hockinson, Wash. / 28:58.0), Isaiah Brindamour (Hinckley, Minn. / 31:09.9), and Cade Kloss (Apple Valley, Minn. / 35:17.05) completed the Cardinals' five-man squad.
 
Caroline Gearin (Osceola, Wis.) was right on Klobe's heels for the Saint Mary's women, stopping the clock in 26:18.2, with Caeli McMahon (Holmen, Wis. / 26:36.2), Abbie Meyer (Sauk Centre, Minn. / 28:08.7), and Amanda Tuvey (West St. Paul, Minn. / 29:02.0) rounding out the SMU lineup.
 
St. Olaf was crowned the men's team champion, finishing with 32 points, while Saint John's was a distant second with 59 points. Carleton placed third with 78 points, followed by Macalester (152) and Concordia (175).
 
Augsburg's Mohammed Bati outkicked St. Olaf's Will Kelly to win the men's individual crown. Bati posted an 8K time of 24:27.32 to edge out Kelly (24:48.90) and Ole teammate Logan Bocovich (24:52.0). Saint John's Lloyd Young finished fourth (25:03.49) and Carleton's Henry Bowman was fifth (25:14.30).
 
Carleton took home the women's team title, finishing with 27 points to easily outdistance St. Olaf (42), with Saint Benedict (88), Macalester (141), and Gustavus (146) take home the top five spots.
 
CSB's Fiona Smith captured individual honors, touring the 6K course in 21:14.58, well in front of Carleton's Clara Mayfield, who placed second in 21:42.76. Along with Mayfield, Carleton captured the other three Top 5 slots — Hannah Preisser was third (22:15.46), Sophie McManus was fourth (22:53.86), and Phoebe Ward was fifth (22:57.96).
 
The Cardinals are now off until Nov. 12, when they head to Northfield, Minn., to take part in the NCAA Regional, hosted by St. Olaf.