Hall of Fame
Tamara Torlakson became the first UC Santa Cruz women’s cross country runner to qualify for the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in 2006. Torlakson fought her way to the NCAA Championships, earning a 10th place finish at the NCAA Division III West Region Championships in a then school record time of 23:14. While the race was remarkable, it wasn’t a guaranteed entry to the NCAA Championships as the top seven individuals not on a qualifying team were invited to NCAAs. Willamette and Colorado College earned automatic team bids with Puget Sound earning an at-large bid, giving Torlakson the seventh and final at-large spot for individual qualifiers. On a muddy and rainy course in West Chester, Ohio, Torlakson made her NCAA debut, fighting through the conditions to cross the finish line in 25:40, finishing in 172nd place out of 279 runners in the 6k course. Torlakson also served as a team captain for the Slugs during her time there. Following graduation, Torlakson moved to Sacramento where she now serves as the president of the Sacramento Running Association. She is the chapter leader for the Arete Women’s Running Club in Sacramento with over 100 people on the team and has gone on to run a sub three hour marathon.
