ROCK HILL, S.C. – Appalachian State University men's cross country won the 28th Winthrop Invitational team championship on Saturday.

The Mountaineers were led by a first-place individual finish from Michael Ellis with a time of 25:36.49. Kyle McFoy and Evan Laratta finished in third and fourth place, respectively. McFoy ran a time of 25:46.44, while Laratta finished in 25:55.02.

Cade Zimmerman placed sixth and finished in a time of 26:00.45, while Chris Anderson finished ninth with a time of 26:13.99. 

Ryan Shannon finished in 11th with a time of 26:37.03, while Josh Cox was right behind in 12th and a time of 26:40.61.

"The men were able to get out well as a pack, but we need to close up our gap from our one through five and one through seven," said head coach Michael Curcio. "We got a great individual effort from Michael to win the race. Zimmerman ran his first 8K well and McFoy helped keep the team rolling. Laratta is also progressing well to where we feel he can be."

The Mountaineers will return to action on Saturday, Oct. 4 when they travel to the USC Upstate Open. The meet is slated to start at 9 a.m.