Carleton College: Varsity Athletics: News: 4x800 Relay Record Falls as Knights Win Twice on Day One of MIAC Championships

News

4x800 Relay Record Falls as Knights Win Twice on Day One of MIAC Championships

May 11, 2012 at 11:40 pm

MIAC championship logo, track MIAC Track & Field Championships website

Photo gallery – courtesy Jim Cella, Concordia sports information

MOORHEAD, Minn. – The Carleton College women’s track and field team made some noise on the opening day of competition at the MIAC Outdoor Championships. The Knights broke a pair of stadium records, including a new school-record in the 4x800-meter relay, and sit fourth in the team competition.

For the fourth consecutive year, a member of the Carleton roster won the 10,000-meter run at the conference meet. However, this time it was Alison Smyth (Sr./Billings, Mont./Billings West) who was first to the line, posting a new PR with a track-record time of 36:19.47 to win the event by more than 20 seconds. Simone Childs-Walker (Sr./Seattle, Wash./Lakeside), who had won the 10K race the previous three years, still earned All-MIAC distinction by placing third at 36:50.23. Taylor Ffitch (Sr./Portland, Ore./St. Mary's Academy) also added to the Knights point total with her seventh-place finish at 39:00.87.

Megan Erlandson, women's track & field action The Knights weren’t done assaulting the record books. They capped the day in grand style by winning the 4x800-meter relay in 9:16.81. That time not only eclipsed the 10-year old Irv Christenson Stadium record but also established a new Carleton record, shattering the previous mark of 9:28.57 established at the 2007 conference meet. Megan Erlandson (Sr./Minneapolis, Minn./Minnehaha Academy), Becca Herd (Fy./Colorado Springs, Colo./Cheyenne Mountain), Colette Celichowski (Fy./Shorewood, Minn./Minnetonka), and Clare Franco (Sr./Brunswick, Maine/Brunswick) combined on today’s record-setting performance.

Earlier in the day, Erlandson placed fourth in the pole vault to receive All-MIAC Honorable Mention as she cleared 3.16 meters (10 feet, 4.25 inches). In the relay, she ran a 2:18.5 leadoff leg, and Franco capped the victory with a 2:14 anchor.

Kao Sutton (So./Hilo, Hawaii/Kamehameha Schools Hawaii) earned All-MIAC Honorable Mention with a sixth-place result in the discus as she recorded a distance of 40.22 meters (131 feet, 11 inches) on her final toss. Earlier in the day, she notched a new personal best of 40.65 meters (133 feet, 4 inches) in the hammer throw but did not advanced out of the preliminary round.

Celichowski, Haley Johnson (Jr./Golden Valley, Minn./Robbinsdale Cooper), and Sarah Trautman (So./Lexington, Mass./BBN) qualified for Saturday’s finals in the 1,500-meter run.

Ellie Wilson (Fy./Roseville, Minn./Roseville) won her heat of the 400-meter dash with a time of 58.86, third-fastest during the prelims.

Kaitlin Randolph (Sr./Drummond, Wis./Drummond) posted the fastest time during the prelims of the 800-meter run, reaching the line at 2:15.22, a new personal record.

Competition on day two begins at 11:30 a.m.