Nov. 21, 2005

Results

Terre Haute, Ind. ---- Samford University's Lauren Blankenship ended her cross country season with a 52nd-place finish at the 2005 NCAA Cross Country Championships, hosted by Indiana State University at the LaVerne Gibson Championship Course in Terre Haute, Ind., on Monday.

Blankenship ran the 6K race in 20:41 to finish 52nd out of 253 athletes, narrowly missing All-America Honors. The two-time National Championship qualifier showed significant improvement from her 2004 finish, where she placed 161st with a 6K time of 22:28.1.

"We're really proud of Lauren," said Samford head coach Glenn McWaters. "She's had a great year so far and we're excited about what she's accomplished this year."

Blankenship was the number-three finisher from the South Region. UTC's Shannon Womack ran a 20:17.8 to finish 19th overall and Auburn's Angela Homan ran a 20:26.5 to finish 30th. Both women were named All-Americans.

Stanford, the 2005 West Regional Champions, captured the 2005 NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship, scoring 126 points. Stanford placed three runners in the top-20. Individually, Northern Arizona's Johanna Nilsson claimed the top position. Nilsson's time of 19:33.9 was the fastest women's 6K time ever posted at the LaVerne Gibson Championship Course.

On the men's side, Wisconsin won the 2005 NCAA Cross Country Championship with 37 points. Wisconsin's Simon Bairu won the 10K race in 29:16. Each of Wisconsin's seven runners finished in the top 50, with six finishing in the top 15.

Blankenship returns to Birmingham, where she will begin preparations for the indoor track season.