BOSTON, Mass. – Graduate student Mike Olson (Sutton, Mass.) and senior Michael Barrett (Hartford, Conn.) laid down dynamic performances on the course to push the Plymouth State University men's cross country team to a fourth place finish at the Suffolk Short Course Classic at Frankin Park on Friday afternoon.
 
Already a veteran of two NCAA National Championships, Olson showed no signs of slowing down with an impressive third place finish in a field of competitors from all three NCAA divisions, including Division I Northeastern, ranked eighth in the Northeast. His 15:36.20 was second fastest among Division III athletes.
 
Barrett crossed the line in 16:07.20 to finish 11th.
 
Plymouth State took fourth overall and was third among D-III institutions, behind just Suffolk and WPI by less than 20 points. The Panthers also finished ahead of D-II Assumption University, which is ranked second in its region.
 
The Basics:

• Suffolk Short Course Classic – 4th of 13 Teams

Team Scores:

• Northeaster (28), WPI (80), Suffolk (95), Plymouth State (99), Bentley (142), Assumption (143), Stonehill (145), UNE (251), Nichols (273), Husson (276), Thomas (354), Salve Regina (471), Emmanuel (403)

How it Happened:

• Olson took third overall in the competitive field with a time of 15:36.20 and finished less than ten seconds off the lead.
• Barrett stuck with the chase pack and snagged an 11th place finish with a time of 16:07.20.
• Juniors Jacob Gallaher (Gambrills, Md.) and Dylan Flewelling (Oakland, Maine) both took spots in the top-30 with times of 16:34.20 and 16:49.70, respectively.
• Freshman Cooper O'Neil (Millbury, Mass.) impressed in his collegiate debut, finishing in the top-five for the Panthers in 16:56.60.
• Not far behind were sophomore Luke Cloutier (Waterboro, Maine) and graduate student Colin Moar (Annandale, Va.) to round out the top-seven with times of 17:11.50 and 17:13.00.

Up Next:

• The Panthers take a weekend off before heading to the UMass Dartmouth Invitational at the Robert Dowd Cross Country Course on Sept. 16. The men's 8k race kicks off at 11:15 a.m.