CARLISLE, Pa. (blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire women's cross country team competed at the NCAA Division III National Championship on Saturday, November 18. The Blugolds took 15th out of 32 teams, scoring 387 points. Carolyn Shult (Sr. - Augusta, Wis.) earned All-America honors by placing fifth overall, becoming the first Blugold woman to ever finish in the top five at the NCAA Championship.

The Blugolds executed a strong race plan, with Shult placing fifth overall in a time of 21:04.3. That time is the second-fastest in the history of UW-Eau Claire women's cross country. Shult earned All-American honors by placing in the top 40.

Following behind Shult was Ava Matejcek (So. – Mankato, Minn./Mankato East) placing 71st overall in a time of 22:15.0. Next in was Morgan Dahl (Sr. – Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) in 130th place with a time of 22:44.7, Keeley Behr (So. - Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley) in 135th place with a time of 22:46.3, and Mikayla Hady (Sr. – Mount Auburn, Ill./Sacred Heart-Griffin) in 200th place with a time of 23:07.4.

"Similar to Mason (Shea), Carolyn got out in the chase pack and was top 10 most of the race and slowly worked her way up to fifth. She executed her race plan perfectly given the challenging course. The rest of the girls did an exceptional job moving up and being patient. Ava, Keeley and Morgan specifically did a good job at this," Blugolds coach Dan Schwamberger said. "Mikayla, Christi and Kirby fought hard during the race and helped the women improve their team placement from last year. It was really cool to see everything come to together and everyone having fun."

Carleton won the meet with a team score of 151 points. The Blugolds' 15th-place finish was their best since 2018, when they took fourth at nationals.