Liz Wanless has faced few equals during her dominant run atop the shot put ranks in NCAA Division III track and field.

Next week, the two-time national champion and Bates College graduate gets the opportunity to measure herself against the nation’s best shot putters.

Wanless is one of seven Maine athletes who are scheduled to compete in the U.S. Olympic Trials in track and field. At stake is a berth in the Summer Olympics in Athens next month. The top three in most events will qualify for the U.S. team.

In addition to Wanless, the Maine contingent includes racewalkers Kevin Eastler of Farmington, Ben Shorey of Ellsworth and Anne Favolise of Columbia; 5,000-meter runners Matt Lane of Yarmouth and Louie Luchini of Ellsworth; and decathlete Jamie Cook of Kennebunk.

As the lone Maine athlete to have met the Olympic qualifying standard, Eastler is considered to have the best shot to advance to Athens.

Wanless, a native of Belleville, Ill., is a four-time All-America who won the Div. III national championship in the shot put during the 2004 indoor and outdoor seasons for Bates. Her career best of 53 feet, 2 inches has her ranked 23rd out of 24 competitors. The top American, North Carolina’s Laura Gerraughty, has a qualifying mark of 62-10.

“I can’t wait to be part of the trials,” Wanless said in a statement released by Bates. “The atmosphere is contagious and inspiring. People go in ranked, but it’s what happens on the day that counts.”

The qualifying round in the women’s shot put will be held Thursday, July 15. The top 12 competitors will advance to Friday’s final round.

Eastler established himself as an Olympic threat when he finished 18th at the 2003 World Outdoor Championships, the best finish ever for an American. His time of 1:22:25 was the second fastest by a U.S. walker and eight seconds off the American record.

Second in the 2000 trials, Eastler is guaranteed a spot on the U.S. team as long as he finishes and no one else eclipses the Olympic A standard of 1:23.0.

Shorey and Favolise both compete for Wisconsin-Parkside and are among the first of a growing group of Maine racewalkers who are following Eastler’s footsteps onto the national stage. Shorey, seeded in the top six, would need to slice more than five minutes off his career best to reach the Olympic standard.

The men’s racewalk will take place Saturday, July 17, followed by the women’s race Sunday.

Luchini, an 11-time All-America at Stanford, and Lane, a seven-time All-America at William & Mary, are seeded fourth (13:25.19) and fifth (13:27.06) in the 5,000. Since only one entrant has met the Olympic standard, only the winner will go to Athens unless someone else meets the standard of 13:21.50.

Should either Luchini or Lane finish in the top three, they would have until early August to meet the Olympic standard.

The first round of the 5,000 is scheduled for Monday.

Cook, seeded 13th, continues a long string of Maine athletes who have competed in the decathlon. The grueling two-day, 10-event competition begins next Friday.