Grand Valley State sent a group of student-athletes to the Stanford University Invitational in California over the weekend. Senior Ryan Cole set the pace for the Lakers, breaking the school record in the 10,000 meter run by almost 40 seconds. Cole ran a 29:42.25, which ranks him second on the national performance list. The previous record of 30:21.04 was set by Aaron Rogers in 2001.

Junior Chris Pabst also broke the old mark in the 10,000 and set a NCAA Qualifying mark with a time of 29:58.47. Redshirt freshman Nate Peck set a new school record in the 5,000 with a time of 14:23.75, while senior Don Wilkins also broke the old record with a time of 14:31.82. Jeff Vyain held the old record of 14:51.64.

"This was a great opportunity for our student-athletes to gain some valuable experience in a big competition while gaining some great confidence with fast times," said head coach Jerry Baltes. "The distance runners came prepared to race fast and the meet atmosphere, coupled with the great field, allowed for us to post fast times."

"We will look to focus our training on the national championships in late May with the group of athletes that hit qualifiers," Baltes added. "This will be a great advantage from a training perspective for our student-athletes."

The Lakers will compete at the Northwest Invitational in Maryville, Missouri on Saturday, April 2.