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Amanda Shaw Milewski, originally from Elkins, WV, enrolled at Franklin & Marshall College in 1982 and joined the already strong cross country and track & field teams, making them better. Her forte was long distance running. As the television commercial says, she just kept going and going, and going. She was a four-year member and letterwinner in each sport and was named captain of the cross country and track teams. In cross country, she was an important member of four MAC championship teams as the Diplomats dominated MAC competition with a 29-1 dual meet record.
The Diplomat's winning score of 23 at the 1984 MAC championships was the lowest total score ever achieved by a women's team. During the same time period, Shaw and her teammates were a force at the NCAA regionals, finishing first or second each year and qualifying for the NCAA Division III Championships. Her freshman and sophomore years, the team finished a strong fourth, laying the groundwork of what was to come in 1985. That year, all the elements came together for coach Ed Woge and his harriers as they swept through the field to capture the only national championship ever won by an F&M team on the field of competition, and the first national championship for a woman's team.
The following year, the team completed their fantastic four-year run with a 10th place national finish. While the team was dominant during her career, Shaw Milewski was also fashioning an outstanding individual career. During her freshman year, she finished 14th in the MAC championship and 18th in the NCAA Mideast Regional qualifier. The following year, she moved up to fifth place in the NCAA Mideast Regional and finished 32nd in the NCAA Division III Championships. As a junior, Shaw Milewski placed third in the MAC championships, second at the NCAA Regional, and seventh at the national championships, earning All-American honors.
She also ran the second fastest time ever on the F&M home course. Her senior season was a continuation of her outstanding career. She was named team Most Valuable Runner by her teammates as she won the MAC championship, led her team to the regional title for the third consecutive year and finished 32nd individually at her final NCAA Division III national appearance after being sick all week. In track and field, she was a dominant competitor, although the team did not have the same overall success that the cross country team achieved. In her freshman year, Shaw Milewski set an F&M record for the 10,000-meter run with a time of 39:21.0. As a sophomore, she finished second in both the 3,000 and 5,000-meter runs at the MAC championships.
Under coach Larry Wise's tutelage, she qualified for the NCAA Division III Track & Field Championships, where she became F&M's first Division III women's track & field All-American by finishing seventh in the 5,000-meter run. She also established school records in the 3,000-meter run (10:11.6) and two-mile run (11:13.6). Shaw Milewski graduated in 1987 with a degree in English. She currently lives in Eldersburg, M.D., where she works as the Director of Public Relations and Marketing for the Chapel Valley Landscape Company.
