Romeoville, Ill. -- The 20th ranked Missouri Southern men's cross country team got a ninth-place individual finish from Nickson Kiptoo and the Lions placed ninth as a team at the Lewis Conference Crossover In Romeoville, Ill. 

In a meet that featured four of the top 11 teams nationally and eight teams from the top-25, the Lions held their own, placing ninth as a team. 

Nickson Kiptoo led the way for the Lions as the sophomore finished the 8k race in a time of 25:11.2 in ninth place, individually. Tyler Rush was 47th in a time of 25:49.8, while Cody Berry was right behind in 48th in a time of 25:50.8. Josh Webb was 84th in a time of 26:18.6, while Tadd Capron was 87th in a time of 26:22.1. 

Mike Shanahan placed 90th in a time of 26:22.1, while Jared Ozee finished the race in a time of 27:20.4. Nathan Painter finished in a time of 27:36.9, while Trevor Shank crossed the finish line in a time of 28:12.7. Ryan Drendel finished i a time of 28:48.6. 

The Lions finished ninth as a team. Third-ranked Grand Valley won the race, while number nine Cal Baptist placed second. Number six Southern Indiana was third, followed by Lindenwood, number 11 Lewis, number 13 Alaska-Anchorage, Walsh, Academy of Art, the Lions and number 25 Malone to round out the top ten teams. 

Southern will be back in action in two weeks as the Lions will travel to Warrensburg to compete in the 2017 MIAA Cross Country Championships.