Sophomore Mike Levene was the first Bobcat to cross the finish line at the 37th annual Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. on Friday. Levene finished 37th overall, while the men’s cross country team placed 33rd out of 40 teams.

Levene finished behind runners from a variety of schools, including Colgate, Ithaca, Hamilton and Monmouth. Junior Max Kaulbach from Princeton University finished in first place with a time of 25:14, one minute and one second ahead of Levene who finished at 26:15. Princeton’s Alejandro Arroyo Yamin and Colgate’s Ed Sheridan finished in second and third.

Sophomore Brian Cotter placed next for the Bobcats in 130th place with a time of 27:10. John Healy finished in 175th at 27:37, followed by Jacob Cetera at 27:48.

“We’ve been working really hard throughout the season,” Quinnipiac head coach Carolyn Martin said, “but we’re not going to see the benefits until we start to taper down into the season. We’re hoping our hard work will carry through to the Northeast Conference Championships and Regionals.”

Princeton University finished first with an average time of 25:31, while Quinnipiac placed in 33rd with an average time of 27:25.

Two of the Bobcats NEC rivals finished before them, Monmouth in fifth place and Mount St. Mary in 24th.

The Bobcats travel to Boston on Saturday, Oct. 9 for the New England Championships, starting at 1 p.m.