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Results

CLEVELAND, Ohio (Nov. 21, 2009) - North Central College women's cross country runners Amanda Laesch and Lauren Hooks finished their 2009 seasons by taking the course against the very best NCAA Division III runners in the nation Saturday, competing as individuals in the national championships at Highland Park Golf Course.

Laesch, making her second national championship appearance, covered the 6,000-meter (3.7-mile) course in 23 minutes, 33.9 seconds, while Hooks placed 173rd overall in 24:14.6.

"It was a tough course with tough competition, but the ladies came in very prepared," said North Central head coach Mahesh Narayanan, coaching in his third national meet in the last four seasons. "We put together what we thought was a good game plan and control what we could conrol."

Laesch was making her second appearance at the championships, having also competed in 2006 when the Cardinals qualified as a team.

"The hills and the soft ground really wore on me," she mentioned, indicating that she has been fighting injuries for much of the season. "I haven't run more than 20 miles a week this season, and have had to work out in the pool the rest of the time. It's been hard being injured, but I think I raced the best that I could."

Hooks, who was named this season's College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Freshman of the Year and placed 19th at the Midwest Regional Championships, hopes to use the experience gained at the meet for future championship competitions.

"I really didn't know what to expect," she said. "I tried to treat it like any other race. There was a lot of great competition here and it was a lot of fun. It was a great experience."

St. Lawrence University junior Wendy Pavlus won the individual national championship in a time of 21:28.0.The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire won the team championship, finishing with a team score of 171 to outdisance St. Lawrence by nine points.