Greensboro, N.C. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse women's track & field team is tied for 24th after the first day of action Thursday at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Championships at Irwin Belk Track at North Carolina A&T State University.  The Eagles recorded 2.0 team points. 

Ithaca College (N.Y.) leads with 20.33 points with the University of Chicago (Ill.) second with 18.0 and UW-Oshkosh third with 14.0.  Johns Hopkins University (Md.) is fourth with 12.0 points while Loras College (Iowa) fifth with 11.0.  Southern Maine University is sixth (10.0) and Emory University, Ga. seventh (9.0) with UW-River Falls, Saint Mary's University, Minn., Nebraska Wesleyan University and Williams College, Mass. are tied for eighth (8.0).  A total of 32 teams scored points on the first day of the three-day meet. 

UWL's Skye Digman earned NCAA III All-America honors on Thursday, placing seventh (139-4) in the discus throw.  It is Digman's second career outdoor All-America honor after finishing seventh in the shot put in 2019. 

Other finishers on Thursday for the Eagles included Ashley O'Connell placing 12th (11-9 3/4) and Abby Meidl tied for 16th (11-3 3/4) in the pole vault while Sydney Wambach was 14th (17-5 1/2) in the long jump. 

After four events in the heptathlon, UWL's Hannah Zenkovich is in fourth-place with 3,081 points while Amanda Wiebke sits in ninth-place with 2,782. Emily Lavarnway of SUNY Geneseo leads with 3,271 points.  Athletes competed in the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put and 200-meter dash on Thursday. 

Action will conclude on Friday, May 28 with the long jump, javelin throw and 800-meter run.  Zenkovich and Wiebke are looking for their first career NCAA All-America honor in the heptathlon.

In Thursday's preliminary action on the track, UWL's Emma Lawrence advanced to Saturday's 400-meter hurdles final after a qualifying time of 1:02.19.  She recorded the fourth-fastest time in the preliminaries.  Emily Dawidowich advanced to Saturday's final in the 200-meter dash with a preliminary time of 24.59 on Thursday. 

UWL's 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays both advanced to Saturday's finals. The 4x100-meter relay of Aly Reuvers, Kelly Aldrich, Savannah Rygiewicz and Dawidowich advanced to Saturday's final with the third-fastest qualifying time of 46.93.  The Eagles' 4x400-meter relay of Lucy Fashingbauer, Amber Johnson, Rygiewicz and Katie Banie advanced with a time of 3:48.20. 

UWL has won three (1983, 1984, 2015) NCAA Division III Championships.  The Eagles also captured the Association of Intercollegiate Athletic for Women (AIAW) in 1982.  UWL has recorded 28 top-10 finishes, including 16 in the top-five, in 36 appearances at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships. 

Action continues Friday, May 28 at 10:30 a.m. (Central).