NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Katherine Geist (So./Crookston, Minn./Crookston) won the 1000-meter run to highlight seven All-MIAC or all-conference honorable mention performances for the Carleton College women's track & field team. The Knights finished the MIAC Indoor Championships in third place out of 12 team competing.
 
Bethel University won its first MIAC team title with 134.5 points with Gustavus earning 125.5 points. Carleton totaled 113.5 points, the most the Knights have scored at the conference meet since tallying 114 points as the runner ups in 2012. St. Olaf (104.5 points) and Saint Benedict (94 points) rounded out the top five.
 
 "This is a young team, and many of them experienced the MIAC Championships for the first time in their career," said Carleton head coach Donna Ricks. "They handled the competitive nature of this meet by demonstrating their overall composure, and they worked hard to achieve every point. The coaching staff believed there was the possibility of finishing in the top-5 if we all brought it to the track on the same day. Whether an athlete scored 10 points or 1 point, it made a difference. As a result, the team finished third. Incredible!"
 
Carleton's first point of the day came in the 4x200-meter relay as Grace Blanchette (Jr./Honolulu , Hawaii/Punahou), Riley Roberts (So./Bloomington, Ind./Bloomington), Audrey Parrott (Fy./Green Isle, Minn./Sibley East), and Amira Aladetan (So./Brooklyn Park, Minn./Park Center) combined on a time of 1:52.19 to earn eighth place.
 
Jocelyn Ferguson (So./Minneapolis, Minn./Minneapolis South) took third place in the 600-meter run, earning All-MIAC recognition as she clocked a time of 1:39.12. Amy Kropp (Sr./Logan, Utah/Logan) added to the Knights' point total with her seventh-place finish in the event with a lifetime-best time of 1:40.89
 
Geist grabbed the top spot on the podium for the 1000-meter run with her time of 2:55.97, which was four seconds faster than her previous PR and moved her into third-place in team history. Mary Blanchard (So./Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell) exactly matcher her personal-best time of 3:05.98 in taking seventh place.
 
In the pole vault, Gabrielle Evans (Sr./Minnetonka, Minn./Minnetonka) earned all-conference status by taking second place after clearing 3.32 meters. Sydney Marsh (Sr./Austin, Minn./Austin) picked up All-MIAC honorable mention as she cleared 3.17 meters to place sixth overall.
 
Three racers scored points for Carleton in the 3000-meter run. Clara Mayfield (Jr./Manhattan, Kan./Manhattan) and Helen Cross (So./Nederland, Colo./Nederland) earned All-MIAC status as the duo finished second and third overall. Phoebe Ward (So./Dobbs Ferry, N.Y./Dobbs Ferry) added to the point total by placing eighth.
 
Mayfield posted her second-fastest time this season at 9:36,.39, and was 1 of 2 runners to better the previous MIAC Championships record—that had stood since 1987—by more than 10 seconds. Cross clocked a personal-best time of 10:17.19, while Ward crossed the line at 10:28.57, more than 10 seconds better than her previous best.
 
The meet concluded with the 4x400-meter relay. Ferguson, Nayeli Williams (Fy./Minneapolis, Minn./Brooklyn Center), Kropp, and Ineke Cordova (Sr./Denver, Colo./Denver Christian) combined on a time of 4:09.45, good for third place.
 
"I'm blessed to have both an amazing team of young women who are amazing individuals and assistant coaches such as Laura Albares and Brian Mondschein, who have put forth an incredible amount of effort this season coaching and organizing the MIAC Championships,. They are truly instrumental in the overall success of this program," Ricks said.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton will now wait to see which athletes earn berths in the NCAA Indoor Championships. Mayfield currently ranks fourth in the 3K, fifth in the mile, and seventh in the 5K. Geist is 18^th in the 800-meter run
 
All-MIAC performances for Carleton (1st-3rd place individual, 1st place relay…through Day 3)
Mile Run
1. Clara Mayfield — 4:52.70 — facility record, school record, and MIAC Championships record
 
800-meter run
3. Katherine Geist — 2:14.72 — school record
 
Distance Medley Relay
1. Carleton (Libby Rowland, Ineke Cordova, Amy Kropp, Clara Mayfield) — 12:22.44 — Facility record and MIAC Championships record
 
600-meter run
3. Jocelyn Ferguson — 1:39.12
 
1000-meter run
1. Katherine Geist — 2:55.97
 
3000-meter run
2. Clara Mayfield — 9:36.39
3. Helen Cross — 10:17.19
 
Pole Vault
2. Gabrielle Evans — 3.32 meters
 
All-MIAC Honorable Mention performances for Carleton (4th-6th place individual, 2nd-6th place relay…through Day 3)
Pentathlon
5. Grace Blanchette – 2,772 points
6. Sydney Marsh – 2,735 points
 
55-meter hurdles
5. Nayeli Williams — 8.79
 
Mile Run
5. Mary Blanchard — 5:12.78
 
400-meter dash
5. Jocelyn Ferguson — 1:00.79
 
800-meter run
5. Lara Erickson — 2:21.73                
 
Long Jump
5. Nayeli Williams — 5.27 meters
 
4x400-meter relay
3. Carleton (Jocelyn Ferguson, Nayeli Williams, Amy Kropp, Ineke Cordova) — 4:09.45
 
Pole Vault
6. Sydney Marsh— 3.17 meters