INFO | USA Triathlon event home page
 
Clermont, Fla.----Wingate senior team captain Carla Larrabeiti won the individual national championship while leading her Bulldogs to their first-ever NCAA Division II team title in the USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championships Saturday. The four-year-old Wingate program finished second, third and second in its previous national championship appearances.
 
Wingate defeated '23 national champion and South Atlantic Conference neighbor Lenoir-Rhyne by five points to take the team crown. The Bulldogs had 742 points, followed by the LR Bears with 737 points. Drury was third with 648 points. Twelve NCAA Division II schools had student-athletes competing in the national championships.
 
In her final appearance in the Wingate Navy Blue and Vegas Gold, Larrabeiti crossed the finish line as the top NCAA Division II student-athlete. She completed the grueling two-day event with a time of 1:00:45. Lenoir-Rhyne's Sabrina Fleig claimed the D2 silver medal with her time of 1:01:22. Fleig was the defending individual national champion.
 
The 2024 national championship was a two-day event with the swim time trial Friday at the Clermont Watersports Complex. The teams were seeded for the bike/run segments Saturday at the Lake Louisa State Park. For the second year in a row, the NCAA Division II Bulldogs competed in the same heats with the Division I and Division III student-athletes.
 
What They Are Saying
Wingate head coach Nick Radkewich
 
"It was a very challenging weekend for the squad having a separate swim and bike/run over two days but the ladies have dealt with challenging race logistics all season. They came together once again to show triathlon can be a great team sport, winning the team title over rival LR."
 
"Carla Larrabeiti stepped into the lead role, winning the individual title over the '23 champion. After last season, Carla really dedicated herself to improving and this was a great way to end her Wingate career. Newcomer Paula Auschill finished off a successful freshman campaign, earning national Freshman of the Year honors."
 
"The team was ultimately successful with sophomore Grace Nolan and senior Pamela Hernandez Quevedo earning All-American honors and scoring valuable points. Freshman Irmak Şereflioğlu overcame a mechanical issue on the bike to be the final scorer and close out the program's first title after three podium finishes." 
 
"It's been a great season. I feel the team really came together in a way that felt different from the past three years…winning a national title was the perfect ending."
 
Wingate Triathlon team ambassador Chris Brewer ('05)
 
"I'm so proud of this team! Triathlon is an incredibly difficult sport. Watching this team pull for each other every day and continue to improve week over week has just been amazing. This is the first championship of a long-term string of titles for this team."
 
Wingate University women's triathlon results
USA Triathlon Collegiate NCAA championships

Overall place-name, time 
15-Carla Larrabeiti, 1:00:45
43-Grace Nolan, 1:02:45
46-Pamela Hernandez Quevedo, 1:02:58
54-Paula Auschill, 1:03:38
75-Irmak Sereflioglu, 1:05:48
103-Katja Krenn, 1:08:39
 
Top five D2 teams
1-Wingate, 742 points
2-Lenoir-Rhyne, 737 points
3-Drury, 648 points
4-Colorado Mesa, 582 points
5-Cal Poly Humboldt, 524 points
 
USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championships (NCAA distances)
 
Swim - 750 meters (Friday)
Bike - 20 kilometers (Saturday)
Run - 5 kilometers (Saturday)

Wingate University
 
Wingate University is a lab of difference-making that serves more than 3,400 students in North Carolina and offers 60 degree pathways, including 37 undergraduate majors, 10 pre-professional tracks and five dual-degree programs. Graduate students choose from seven master's and five doctoral programs. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a leader in healthcare education where nearly one in five undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 26 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award the past 16 times it has been awarded. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.
 
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