The Boston University women’s cross country squad put together a successful team effort Saturday in New Britain, Conn., finishing first out of eight teams at the Ted Owen Invitational. The Terriers’ 25 points were enough to comfortably beat the second-place finisher, the University of New Hampshire, which finished with 40 points. Saturday marked the team’s second race of the season – and its first win. BU also had a strong performance at the Dartmouth Invitational Sept. 13, when it finished third out of seven teams. “We were very pleased,” BU coach Bruce Lehane said. “We know we have a good team, and particularly, a good team up front.” Senior Andrea Walkonen dominated the field Saturday, cruising past the finish line at 16:49 to set a record for the 5K course. Junior Erin Lagasse finished second overall (17:17), while freshman Katie Matthews (18:16), junior captain Sarah Mosser (18:30) and freshman Molly James (18:35) finished fifth, seventh, and 10th, respectively, to secure a Terrier victory. Sophomore Courtney Gardner finished 11th (18:39) and senior captain Mollie Zapata claimed 13th (18:42). The remaining Terrier finishers were freshman Sarah Healy in 18th (19:12), freshman Madeline Steiner in 24th (19:25), freshman Anna Lukes in 26th (19:32) and freshman Amanda Solly in 33rd (19:41). Walkonen missed the Dartmouth Invitational with an injury, but bounced back nicely with Saturday’s win. She won last year’s New England Championship and is a threat to contend for the top spot again this year, Lehane said. “I think [Walkonen] is running stronger than she was last year,” Lehane said. Lehane also said that, of all his runners, Lagasse has taken the “biggest step forward.” She has surprised the team this season with high finishes in the first two races. “As a freshman, [Erin] was probably about a minute and a half back from where she is now,” Lehane said. “She is on her way to having a big breakthrough.” As a sophomore last year, Lagasse was injured and unable to run, and so it was a positive sign when she kicked off the fall season with a win at the Dartmouth Invitational. She led the field of 76 runners with a time of 19:53.8, securing her first-ever collegiate victory. She subsequently garnered America East Women’s Cross Country Performer of the Week honors last week. Lehane has high hopes for his runners the rest of the season. They are striving for a win at the New England Championship Oct. 11 at Boston’s Franklin Park. “The New England Championship is going to be tough,” Lehane said. “But we’re going to try to win.” Walkonen and Lagasse provide plenty of toughness up front for BU, but Lehane stressed that the whole team needs to rise to the occasion to win a championship. “We’re hoping to get a little stronger through the middle of the team,” he said. “We need a few people to get to the level of running that they haven’t quite reached yet. Your fifth runner is as important as your first.”