The Tritons women’s cross country team placed 17th out of 24 teams on Nov. 20 at the 2004 NCAA National Championship at the University of Southern Indiana Cross Country Course in Evansville, Ind.

Seven UCSD athletes ran the hilly 6,000-meter course and five of them placed in the top 100 out of 188 competitors.

Junior Mimi Hodgins arrived first for the Tritons, finishing 53rd, clocking in with a time of 23 minutes, 47 seconds. Sophomore Tina Firouz came in 23 seconds later at 24:10, putting her in 73rd place. Coming in right behind in 78th place was freshman Diane Dunn at 24:13. Junior Lindsay Young crossed the finish line at 24:28, marking her at 84th. Freshman Jessica Laslovich finished in 94th place with a time of 24:26. Junior Michelle DiMeo and senior Lindsay Stalker rounded out the Tritons’ effort with their 101st-place and 137th-place finishes. DiMeo earned a time of 24:31, while Stalker ended her career in blue and gold with a 25:25 race.

Adams State College took first place for the second consecutive season, with four of their women in the top-15 runners. Among them were Victoria Martinez and Stephanie Bylander, who came in second and fourth place, respectively. This marks the 10th NCAA victory for the Grizzlies in Division II and the 13th title in their history. Edinboro and Western State followed close behind in second and third places, respectively.

Chelsea Smith of BYU-Hawaii captured the individual title for the third consecutive year with a time of 21:33.

The National Championship marks the end of the season for the Tritons, whose 2004 record boasts three first-place meets, two second-place team finishes and one third-place showing through a schedule with only eight noteworthy events.