June 11, 2005

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Samford sophomore Lauren Blankenship finished ninth in the 5,000-meter run at the NCAA Finals Saturday night in Sacramento. Blankenship ran the race in 16:54.16.

Megan Metcalfe of West Virginia won the event with a time of 16:31.88. Blankenship became the first Samford track athlete to compete in the NCAA Championships. She also narrowly missed becoming the first Samford track athlete to earn Division I All-America honors, as the top eight finishers in each event were named All-American.

The event ends a stellar sophomore season for Blankenship in which she also became the first Samford cross country athlete to reach the NCAA Championships.