Amanda Shaw Milewski, originally from Elkins, WV, enrolled atFranklin & Marshall College in 1982 and joined the alreadystrong cross country and track & field teams, making thembetter. Her forte was long distance running. As the televisioncommercial says, she just kept going and going, and going. She wasa four-year member and letterwinner in each sport and was namedcaptain of the cross country and track teams. In cross country, shewas an important member of four MAC championship teams as theDiplomats dominated MAC competition with a 29-1 dual meetrecord.
The Diplomat's winning score of 23 at the 1984 MAC championshipswas the lowest total score ever achieved by a women's team. Duringthe same time period, Shaw and her teammates were a force at theNCAA regionals, finishing first or second each year and qualifyingfor the NCAA Division III Championships. Her freshman and sophomoreyears, the team finished a strong fourth, laying the groundwork ofwhat was to come in 1985. That year, all the elements came togetherfor coach Ed Woge and his harriers as they swept through the fieldto capture the only national championship ever won by an F&Mteam on the field of competition, and the first nationalchampionship for a woman's team.
The following year, the team completed their fantastic four-yearrun with a 10th place national finish. While the team was dominantduring her career, Shaw Milewski was also fashioning an outstandingindividual career. During her freshman year, she finished 14th inthe MAC championship and 18th in the NCAA Mideast Regionalqualifier. The following year, she moved up to fifth place in theNCAA Mideast Regional and finished 32nd in the NCAA Division IIIChampionships. As a junior, Shaw Milewski placed third in the MACchampionships, second at the NCAA Regional, and seventh at thenational championships, earning All-American honors.
She also ran the second fastest time ever on the F&M homecourse. Her senior season was a continuation of her outstandingcareer. She was named team Most Valuable Runner by her teammates asshe won the MAC championship, led her team to the regional titlefor the third consecutive year and finished 32nd individually ather final NCAA Division III national appearance after being sickall week. In track and field, she was a dominant competitor,although the team did not have the same overall success that thecross country team achieved. In her freshman year, Shaw Milewskiset an F&M record for the 10,000-meter run with a time of39:21.0. As a sophomore, she finished second in both the 3,000 and5,000-meter runs at the MAC championships.
Under coach Larry Wise's tutelage, she qualified for the NCAADivision III Track & Field Championships, where she becameF&M's first Division III women's track & field All-Americanby finishing seventh in the 5,000-meter run. She also establishedschool 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 inEnglish. She currently lives in Eldersburg, M.D., where she worksas the Director of Public Relations and Marketing for the ChapelValley Landscape Company.
