Blugolds Claim NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship
MADISON, Wis.--University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire claimed the 2009 NCAA Division III Women’s Cross Country Championship at Highland Park Golf Course in Cleveland, Ohio, on Nov. 21. The national meet was hosted by Baldwin-Wallace College (Ohio).
The Blugolds totaled 171 team points to surpass St. Lawrence University’s (N.Y.) second-place sum of 180. Calvin College (Mich.) was third with 195 points, Middlebury College (Vt.) fourth with 244 and Massachusetts Institute of Technology fifth with 254. UW-Oshkosh placed 13th with 398 points and UW-La Crosse 17th with 458 to mark the third straight season that three teams from the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) have placed in the top 18. A total of 32 teams competed in this year’s race.
UW-Eau Claire’s NCAA championship is the first in program history and the sixth by a WIAC program. The Blugolds claimed the NAIA national crown in 1984. UW-La Crosse won the NCAA title in 1983, while UW-Oshkosh secured first-place trophies in 1987, 1988, 1991 and 1996.
Individually, St. Lawrence’s Wendy Pavlus topped the 279 individuals that completed the 6,000-meter race with a time of 21:28.0. Marie Borner of Bethel University (Minn.) was second in 21:46.3, UW-Oshkosh’s Ayla Mitchell third in 21:46.3, Lauren Reich of DePauw University (Ind.) fourth in 21:50.5 and Katie Navarre of Denison University (Ohio) fifth in 21:57.1.
Additional top finishes from the WIAC included: UW-La Crosse’s Stephanie Perleberg seventh with a time of 22:21.2, UW-Eau Claire’s Alyssa Sybilrud 21st in 22:36.2 and UW-Eau Claire’s Margaret Ho 33rd in 22:50.5. The top 35 individuals claim All-America recognition from the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
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