Although the venue may be the same, fans can expect to see many new faces on the awards stand as a new returning champion will be crowned in 15 individual events and one relay competition at the women's NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship held Thursday (May 22) through Saturday (May 24) at J.J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.

The 2008 championship, held in Oshkosh, Wisconsin for the second consecutive year, features a returning champion in only four individual and one relay event. Teams from around the country will compete for a chance to take home the team title and 19 individual championships, two relay championships, as well as eight All-America awards in each of the 21 events.

After winning the 2006 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship as the favorite, the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh surprised the field and won the 2007 crown for its record eighth title last season with 57 points.

Calvin College (Mich.) finished second to UW-Oshkosh at last year’s NCAA Division III Outdoor Championship with 44.5 points, while City College of New York placed third with 43, Amherst College (Mass.) fourth with 41 and Loras College (Iowa) and Lincoln University (Pa.) fifth with 32.

The top 10 teams were seventh-place Wartburg College (Iowa) with 31 points, eighth-place State University of New York-Cortland with 30 and ninth-place Augustana College (Ill.), the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and Williams College (Mass.) with 25. A total of 74 schools placed at last year’s meet.

Returning 2007 individual champions include UW-Oshkosh senior Terri Schwamb, University of Redlands (Calif.) senior Natalie Calderon, University of St. Thomas (Minn.) senior Shara Guidry and UW-Platteville senior Marcia Taddy. Wartburg College sophomores Hannah Baker and Chelsey Jacobs are back as members of the 2007 winning 1,600-meter relay team.

Schwamb returns as the number one seed in the hammer throw, a title she won last season with a toss of 198-0. Calderon is the reigning long jump champion with a mark of 19-6 and enters the championship as the second seed, as well as the number one seed in the triple jump.

Guidry won the discus last year with a heave of 145-11, but is seeded ninth in this year's competition as 18 of the participants are seeded higher than last year's winning toss. Taddy, who won the 1,500-meter run by a scant .01 last season in a time of 4:27.04 is trying to become a four-time All-American as the second seed. Taddy is also the third seed in the 800-meter run, a title she won in 2005.

Baker and Jacobs join sophomore Jenny Kordick and junior Kelsey Steffens as the fifth seed in the 1,600-meter relay.

Also scheduled to compete is Illinois Wesleyan University senior Rachel Anderson, the top seed in the 200-meter dash and 400-meter run. Anderson is also a member of the Titans' 400-meter and 1,600-meter relay teams who are both seeded fourth. Anderson looks to become a four-time All-American in the 400-meter run after taking fifth in 2005, second last season and winning the title in 2006.

Gustavus Adolphus College (Minn.) junior Lisa Brown is the remaining past individual national champion as she claimed the prize in the javelin in 2006 after finishing second last season. She is the top seed in this year's national championship.

Perhaps one of the most intriguing races will be the 10,000-meter run where nine competitors return to compete to take the top-spot on the podium. State University of New York-Plattsburgh senior Toni Wiszowaty is the top-seed after finishing second last season. Wiszowaty will also be competing in the 5,000-meter run as the third seed.

Hoping to join Wiszowaty as an individual national champion for the first-time are 2007 runner-up finishers Calvin College senior Sarah Wittingen, Messiah College (Pa.) senior Amy Reed and Loras College senior Ellen Thys. Frostburg State University (Md.) sophomore Sumer Rohrs, Tufts
University (Mass.) senior Catherine Beck and College of New Jersey senior Jessica Bonelli were second-place performers in 2006. Wittingen enters the weekend as the top seed in the 400-meter hurdles, Reed in the top position in the heptathlon and Thys as the second seed in the discus. Rohrs sits as the favorite in the 100-meter hurdles, Beck third in the 1,500-meter run and Bonelli sixth in the 400-meter run.

Besides Anderson and Taddy, individual event four-time qualifiers include Colby College's (Maine) Anna King and Dickinson College's (Pa.) Caitlin Bradley in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and State University of New York-Geneseo's Amanda Haney in the high jump.

King and Bradley sit as the first and second seed, respectively, and Haney enters the competition as the 10th seed and joins seven other second-place competitors trying to win their first individual national title. She placed second last season and third in 2005.

In one of the most wide-open races in NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship history, Illinois Wesleyan University, Texas Lutheran University and Keene State College (N.H.) are expected to battle for the team title. All three teams are in unfamiliar territory as none of them have ever captured a team trophy, which represents at least a fourth-place team finish.

UW-Eau Claire brings the most competitors to this year's championship with 12 individuals in 10 events. Wartburg College has 10 competitors in 11 events, Calvin College eight athletes in 10 events, UW-La Crosse 11 participants in nine events and the University of St. Thomas 10 individuals in eight events.

Texas Lutheran University senior Jessica Raglon leads the field by qualifying in five events. Anderson, University of St. Thomas sophomore Nikke Arola, Texas Lutheran University senior Staci Jackson, Wartburg College junior Kelsey Steffens and Texas Lutheran University senior Ashley Williams each have qualified in four events.