Erica Hawley recorded the biggest win of her young collegiate career yesterday in Tuscaloosa, Alabama when she won the women’s draft legal sprint at the USA Triathlon Collegiate Club National Championships.

Hawley, a freshman, helped make it a clean sweep for the University of Colorado triathlon team after Dan Feeney, a 26-year-old doctoral student, took first place in the men’s race with a time of 57 min 07.59 sec. Hawley cruised to her win in 1:09.03.58 to help her university in their bid to keep alive a tradition of winning the combined team championships each year since 2010.

“Today I raced in the USA collegiate club national championships (draft legal sprint event) and I managed the win!,” a delighted Hawley said in an e-mail last evening. “Going in to the event I didn’t know anyone in the field so I was going in blind and wasn’t sure what to expect.

“I had a strong swim, coming out with second place. Teresa Groton and then I managed to gain a lead through T1. On the first lap of the bike I had a lead and no one was gaining, so I had to solo it!

“It was a five-lap course so I could see where everyone was making time, or not. On laps four and five I just kept gaining time on them and going into T2 I had a lead over one minute. The run definitely hurt with the heat, and I had a stitch, but I knew that I was in the lead and all I needed was to keep it comfortable in order to win.

“It was an incredible day. My team of 28 were so supportive and it was an unreal atmosphere. It made the win even more memorable.”

Hawley dominated the women’s race, exiting the 750-metre swim in the Black Warrior River with a small lead group and took control on the 20.2-kilometre bike course. She ran 20:16 in the 5k run, the fastest split of any competitor, easing up in the second half with a commanding lead.

“The first half lap on the bike I was in the lead and I was like ‘should I let up?’ But I was gaining time on them so I thought I might as well just go from the start,” Hawley told the Tuscaloosa News. “I just did the whole bike by myself. I came into the transition. The run did not feel good, but luckily, it was fine and I still managed to win.”

Hawley finished more than two minutes in front of second-place finisher, Groton, of the United States Military Academy at West Point.

Feeney’s race was closer, finishing four seconds ahead of Joshua Fowler of the University of Arizona. He came out from the swim a minute behind the leaders and worked his way to the front. Feeney, who ran cross country as an undergrad at Delaware, got comfortable while closing out the run.

Their first-place finishes each earned their teams 250 points in the standings towards the team championships this weekend. Both Feeney and Hawley will race again today as the championships continue with the men’s and women’s Olympic-distance races in the morming and the mixed team relay in the afternoon.

“I think we’re feeling pretty good for tomorrow,” Hawley said.

There is also a a boys and girls high school championships.