University of Arizona, Wingate, North Central Win 2024 Women’s Collegiate Triathlon National Championship Team Titles
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by USA Triathlon
CLERMONT, Fla. — The University of Arizona won the program’s first NCAA Division I women’s collegiate triathlon national title on Saturday, Nov. 9 in Clermont, Florida, at the 2024 Women’s Collegiate Triathlon National Championships. The Wildcats ended the seven-year championship title streak by in-state rival Arizona State University. ASU’s Naomi Ruff won the Division I individual title.
Division II also saw a new champion as Wingate University of Wingate, North Carolina, won its first team title, led by Carla Larrabeiti, who won the DII individual crown.
In DIII, North Central College of Naperville, Illinois, won its third consecutive national title, led by senior Hailey Poe who won her fourth consecutive DIII individual title. In September, Poe was awarded by the USA Triathlon Foundation the inaugural ALEXANDER Award, which honors an outstanding NCAA women’s triathlete who excels not only on the triathlon race course, but also demonstrates exemplary achievements in academics and community service.
Athletes from 39 NCAA DI, DII, and DIII women's collegiate triathlon teams from across the country competed on Nov. 8-9 at the Women's Collegiate Triathlon National Championships, which was organized by Bill Burnett of Streamline Events and run in conjunction with the 2024 USA Triathlon Clermont Age Group Challenge Cup.
Due to damage caused by last month’s Hurricane Milton, the event featured a new swim venue and format. Triathletes competed in an open water 750-yard swim time trial on Friday, Nov. 8 at Clermont Watersports Park. Those results then set the start order and margins for a pursuit-style duathlon race on Saturday, Nov. 9, with athletes running a short distance into transition before starting a 20-kilometer bike, followed by a 5k run, all at Lake Louisa State Park.
An NCAA Emerging Sport for Women, women's collegiate triathlon features the same fast, tactical, and draft-legal racing that is contested at the elite level, including the Olympics and World Triathlon Championship Series. More than 40 schools offer women’s collegiate triathlon at the varsity level, an important benchmark reached in 2022 as the NCAA Emerging Sport for Women now has a few more steps to take on its way to being fully managed by the NCAA as a Championship Sport. To learn more about Women’s Collegiate Triathlon, visit USA Triathlon’s website here.
Division I: Arizona Wins First Team Title, Naomi Ruff of Arizona State Wins Individual Title
Division I has a new champion. The University of Arizona, in its second year as a program, took down the seven-time champions from Arizona State University.
Kelly Wetteland and Maragreta Vrablova placed second and third, and the Wildcats showed their incredible depth, placing three athletes in the top six and five in the top 13. Molly Lakustiak placed sixth, Dana Prikrylova ninth and Ellison Wolfe 13th as Arizona scored 942 points to win the program’s first women’s collegiate triathlon national title.
Arizona State finished runners-up, with 920 points. Naomi Ruff won the individual title, finishing with a time of 59 minutes, 8 seconds. Teammates Amber Schlebusch (fourth), Zoe Adam Mari (12th), Sidney Clement (18th) and Alice Alessandri (20th) contributed to the Sun Devils’ second-place finish.
Queens University of Charlotte placed third, as Beth Cook (fifth) and Livia Wespe (eighth) turned in top-10 performances. Queens had won six DII national titles before jumping up to compete at the DI level in 2022.
DII: Wingate Wins Program’s First Title, Led by Carla Larrabeiti, Who Wins Individual Title
Wingate senior Carla Larrabeiti won the DII individual title in a time of 1:00:45 and the Bulldogs placed three athletes in the top six to capture the school’s first women’s collegiate triathlon team title.
Grace Nolan placed fifth among DII athletes in 1:02:45, while Pamela Hernandez was sixth in 1:02:58. The Wingate trio earned DII All-American honors.
Last year’s champion Sabrina Fleig of Lenoir Rhyne University finished runner-up to Larrabeiti as Lenoir Rhyne placed second in the team standings, scoring 737 points to Wingate’s 742. Fleig’s teammates, Zoila Sicilia and
Claudia Teran placed third and seventh, respectively.
Drury University took third in the team standings, with Kristina Vestman the top finisher, placing 10th among DII athletes.
DIII: North Central’s Hailey Poe Wins 4th Individual Title, North Central Wins Third-Straight
Hailey Poe of North Central College won her fourth consecutive DIII individual, clocking a time of 1:05:03, while her teammates Charlotte Kumler, Bethany Smeed and Keely Mick placed third, fourth and sixth among DIII athletes to propel North Central to its third consecutive national title and sixth team title in the program's history.
Trine University of Angola, Indiana, placed second, led by Grace Huisman's fifth-place finish.
Central College of Pella, Iowa, took third in the team standings, led by Adeline Koritz in 10th.
2024 Women’s Collegiate Triathlon National Championship
Clermont, Fla. | 750m swim, 20k bike, 5k run | Complete Results
Team Champions by Division
Division I
1. University of Arizona, 942 points
2. Arizona State University, 920
3. Queens University of Charlotte, 895
Division II
1. Wingate University, 742
2. Lenoir Rhyne University, 737
3. Drury University, 648
Division III
1. North Central College, 525
2. Trine University, 309
3. Central College, 261
Individual All-Americans By Division
Division I
1. Naomi Ruff, Arizona State University, 59:08
2. Kelly Wetteland, University of Arizona, 59:20
3. Maragreta Vrablova, University of Arizona, 59:24
4. Amber Schlebusch, Arizona State University, 1:03:49
5. Beth Cook, Queens University of Charlotte, 59:43
6. Molly Lakustiak, University of Arizona, 59:50
7. Maira Carreau, University of Denver, 59:56
Division II
1. Carla Larrabeiti, Wingate University, 1:00:45
2. Sabrina Fleig, Lenoir Rhyne University, 1:01:22
3. Zoila Sicilia, Lenoir Rhyne University, 1:02:03
4. Natalie Mitchell, Cal Poly Humboldt, 1:02:36
5. Grace Nolan, Wingate University, 1:02:45
6. Pamela Hernandez Quevedo, Wingate University, 1:02:58
7. Claudia Teran, Lenoir Rhyne University, 1:03:29
Division III
1. Hailey Poe, North Central College, 1:05:03
2. Kathryn Gardner, Calvin University, 1:06:06
3. Charlotte Kumler, North Central College, 1:06:40
4. Bethany Smeed, North Central College, 1:06:57
5. Grace Huisman, Trine University, 1:07:51
6. Keely Mick, North Central College, 1:08:28
7. Aly Barnes, Millikin University, 1:11:31
About USA Triathlon
USA Triathlon is proud to serve as the National Governing Body for triathlon, as well as duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon, paratriathlon, and indoor and virtual multisport events in the United States. Founded in 1982, USA Triathlon sanctions more than 3,500 events and races and connects with and supports more than 300,000 unique active members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world. In addition to its work at the grassroots level with athletes, coaches, and race directors — as well as the USA Triathlon Foundation — USA Triathlon provides leadership and support to elite athletes competing at international events, including World Triathlon World Championships, Pan American Games and the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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