June 11, 2005

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Christine Spence ran and leapt to her third and fourth All-America honors in her career Saturday evening as a member of the UNLV track and field team at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships being held at the Alex G. Spanos Sports Complex.

The top eight finishers in each event at the championships earned All-America recognition.

Spence earned All-America honors in both the 400 meter hurdles and the high jump, and in the process became the first UNLV track and field athlete to earn the honor four times in single events. Trevaia Williams and Crystal Irving each earned All-America accolades four times as well for the Rebels, but they both earned the distinction running on relays teams as well as competing in individual events.

Spence finished seventh in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 57.01, marking the second time that the senior from Lee's Summit, Mo., earned All-America honors in the event. Last year she also finished seventh in the 400 meter hurdles, the first time that Spence garnered All-America accolades. Shauna Smith of Wyoming won this year's 400 meter hurdles title with a time of 54.32.

She followed that with a sixth-place finish in the high jump, clearing 6'-0.00" as Spence capped her Rebel career. Sharon Day of Cal Paly-SLO won the event with a leap of 6'-4.00".

Spence earned her first All-America honor at last year's NCAA Outdoor Championships, finishing seventh in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 57.20. This past indoor season she earned All-America honors for a second time after she finished eighth in the pentathlon with 4,036 points at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

For complete results of the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Championships click here.