Hartford, Conn., May 22 - Three members of the Trinity College men’s and women’s outdoor track and field teams, coached by George Suitor, will compete in the 2001 NCAA Division III National Championships on Thursday, May 24 thru Saturday, May 26 at Millikin University in Decatur, Ill.

Women’s senior co-captain Amanda Rival (Berlin, Conn.) qualified for the third consecutive season in the heptathlon. Her College-record score of 4,658 points at the Penn Relays in late April is the highest of any Division III athlete in the nation this spring. Rival finished fifth in the heptathlon at the 1999 NCAA Division III Nationals, and was leading after three events last spring before suffering a disqualification in the 200-meter dash.

Fellow women’s senior co-captain Marisa Eddy (Los Angeles, Calif) qualified with a College-record time of 2:14.27 In the 800-meter dash, and sophomore Ryan Bak (Suffield, Conn.) qualified with a College-record time of 3:52.58 this past weekend at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships.

Rival won both the 100-meter high hurdles and the high jump at the 2000 NCAA Division III National Heptathlon Championships and finished fifth in 1999 with 4,618 points to earn All-American honors. This spring, she qualified for Nationals early at the Penn Relays, and chose not to compete for a third consecutive NCAA Division III New England Heptathlon title. Instead, Rival earned All-New England Division III honors in the 100-meter high hurdles and the 200-meter dash. She is a four-time All-New England, three-time All-NESCAC, and a 1999 All-ECAC selection in outdoor track, and a four-time, All-New England and a three-time All-ECAC indoor track selection. She is the two-time defending New England Division III Indoor Track Pentathlon champion, and the 2000-01 Trinity College Senior female Athlete of the Year.

Eddy ran her College-record, qualifying time in a second-place finish at the NCAA Division III New England Championships. Eddy is making her fourth trip to the NCAA Division III National Track and Field Championships and her second to the Outdoor Championships. She barely missed reaching the finals of the 800-meter run in 1999, but was plagued by an injury last spring. She is a two-time, All-New England and a 1999 All-NESCAC selection, as well as a four-time All-New England and a 2000-01 All-ECAC indoor track selection.

Bak ran his College-record, qualifying time last weekend in a first-place finish at the ECAC Championships. Bak is making his third trip to the NCAA Division III National Championships but his first in the outdoor season. He finished seventh in the 1,500-meters with a time of 3:54.50 at the 2000-01 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Nationals this March. He is a two-time All-New England, All-NESCAC, and All-ECAC outdoor track selection.