MACON, Ga. - Georgia State senior Stephanie Berger finished first to lead the Panthers on Friday evening in the 5k Julius Johnson Invitational, hosted by Mercer University.

Berger ran GSU's first 5k of the season in 18:43.04, edging Mercer's Jenna Gipperich in 19:14.87 and Georgia Southern's Rebeccca Parker in 19:28.60.

Although Georgia State had finishers 1, 4 and 6, host Mercer rallied with runners four and five to win the Invitational with 39 points, two lower than Georgia State's 41. Georgia Southern was third with 50 points.

The young Panthers got a fourth-place finish from sophomore Jordan Townsley in 19:31.01 and sixth-place effort from freshman Alicia Bermudez in 19:43.90. Sophomore Nuria Ramirez was 14th in 20:36.54 and freshman Lindsay Shealy was 16th in 20:42.85.

Berger, a senior transfer from South Carolina, missed her personal best of 18:24 on the damp, rolling hills in Macon.

Team Scores (Division I only)

1.      Mercer                39

2.      Georgia State      41

3.      Ga. Southern       50

4.      Jacksonville St. 100

There were more teams, but non-Division I schools do not count in NCAA records against Division I teams.

Georgia State will run next Saturday, Oct. 3 at the JSU Foothills Invitational in Oxford, Ala.