Banana Slugs Take 31st at NCAA Division III Championships
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The UC Santa Cruz women’s cross country team finished 31st at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships on Saturday, earning 844 points in their fourth consecutive appearance. The Banana Slugs averaged a time of 24:03.6, totaling 2:00:17.9 as a team.
Elena Stanciu led UC Santa Cruz with a 157th-place finish, completing the 6k course in 23:12.9.Helena Janku finished 214th overall in 23:39.3, notably assisting an MIT student-athlete across the finish line. emma wirz placed 244th with a time of 24:05.9, while Fiona Wolf, making her NCAA debut, finished 262nd in 24:25.2.
Cheryl Chuang rounded out the scoring five,taking 276th overall with a time of 24:54.8, improving six positions in the final 1k. holly Alchin finished in 279th place with a time of 25:03.1, and Ryanne Reynolds completed the race in 25:57.7 for 287th place.
During the Championship awards ceremony, Helena Janku was recognized as the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete Award winner, boasting a 4.00 GPA and double majoring in Environmental Studies (Conservation Science and Policy) and Legal Studies.
