EUGENE, Ore. -- Like the Penguins, who wore "Sacrifice" T-shirts through their long playoff run, Lauryn Williams found new levels of dedication as she trained for the United States track and field Olympic trials.

Williams, a Rochester High School graduate, has always trained hard. How else do you explain her silver medal in the women's 100-meter dash at the 2004 Games at age 20, or the fact that she trains at noon in subtropical Miami, where she now lives.

But this was unprecedented. Williams gave up a lot in the 10 weeks leading up to the meet here at Hayward Field. She went healthy with her diet.

"It was a lot of sacrifice," Williams said last night. "I love to eat. That's my thing. Greasy, cheesy and sweet -- that's me. But the sacrifice was worth it."

That's because she finished third in the 100 final last night to earn a spot on the 2008 Olympic team that's headed to Beijing in August.

In a lightning field that saw many times under 11 seconds through the four rounds, Williams ran a personal-best 10.90 in the final -- technically 10.897, finishing .003 seconds behind Torri Edwards. Muna Lee, a former college rival of Williams, won the final in 10.85.

"All eight lanes were very worthy of a trip to China, and there's only three spots," Williams said. "You had to get on the line and run your heart out. I'm very lucky to be one of the three.

"The talent is amazing. I'm not going to say it was the best race ever put together, but it was pretty darn close. I'm looking forward to Beijing and America possibly being able to go 1-2-3. I don't think the final there is going to be as intense as what we experienced here."

For Edwards, the trip to Beijing might be considered redemption. She qualified for the 2004 Games but was barred from those Olympics after she was given a two-year suspension for a positive drug test that she said was produced by tablets given to her by a doctor.

"This year was an Olympic year and my main goal was to make the Olympic team," she said. "I did that."

The top competitors had predicted that the field was so tough it would be close and would take a time of under 11 seconds to qualify for the Games, and they were right. Marshavet Hooker was fourth in 10.93 and 200 specialist Allyson Felix fifth in 10.96.

Williams' time topped what had been a career best of 10.91 that she ran in 2005. Her silver-medal time in Athens at the 2004 Olympics was 10.96, then a career best.

The three U.S. 100 representatives are top candidates for relay teams at Beijing. They also are entered in the 200 next weekend.

"I'm excited about the 200 now because the pressure's off," Williams said. "I had a nightmare [Friday] night that if I didn't make the [100] team, I was going to be just scrambling. Now I'm going to go out in the 200 and have a good time knowing I'm doing what I really want to do in Beijing."

In 2004, Williams was something of a surprise qualifier for the Games. She had just punctuated her career at Miami with an NCAA championship. That left her family scrambling to afford to go to Athens, particularly her father, David, who has health problems and is on the kidney transplant list.

Through generous donations, including $10,000 from Sewickley businessman Tim Weibe, they were able to go.

Williams is worried about her father making the trip to Beijing, especially considering he had trouble in Greece, including time in the hospital with a bleeding ulcer.

"But he's the dad and I'm the child, and I'm sure he's going to exercise his parenthoodness or whatever word you want to use and he's going to be there," she said. "I'm not sure exactly how we're going to get the funds, but I'm sure a way will be made like it was in '04 and I'm sure I'll have a ton of family over there."