PASADENA, Calif. – The Carleton College women's track & field team had two team members in action this week, competing at meets filled mostly with NCAA Division I level competition. Clara Mayfield (Sr./Manhattan, Kan./Manhattan) broke the school record in winning the 5K during a meet at UCLA, while Grace Blanchette (Sr./Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou) set three personal bests while competing in the heptathlon at San Diego State.
 
Blanchette was first to see competition on the spring break trip. The Aztec Invitational opened with cool, windy, and rainy conditions on Thursday, but the forecast improved on Friday. She finished 12^th out of 19 athletes to take part in all seven events, totaling 4,069 points. The field at this meet included 10 NCAA D-I student-athletes and five from D-II programs.
 
After clocking a time of 16.65 in the 100-meter hurdles, Blanchette cleared 1.44 meters in the high jump and measured 9.19 meters in the shot put. She then posted a personal-best of 28.08 in the 200-meter dash.
 
Day two began with a distance of 4.82 meters in the long jump, followed by a career-best 37.71 meters on her first attempt in the javelin. That measured nearly eight feet better than her previous record and moved Blanchette into fifth place in team history.
 
This certainly inspired her for the 800-meter run where Blanchette established her third PR of the meet, clocking a time of 2:34.25 in the final event and taking her to a point total over 4,000.
 
"I was very pleased with Grace's overall performances the past two days," said Carleton head coach Donna Ricks. "She battled the elements and jumped into events that we have not been able to practice to the full extent in Minnesota. However, this did not hinder her performance, especially in the javelin."
 
The Knights had to leave SDSU right after the final event of the heptathlon in order to drive Mayfield to UCLA for the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival, arriving an hour before the 5K was scheduled to begin.
 
A total of 24 runners started that race, including 20 competitors from NCAA D-I programs and two from D-II teams.
 
The race went out aggressively the first two laps, then settled in. Mayfield was in command for the majority of the race, but with about a mile to go, she was passed by an UC-Irvine athlete. Now running in second place—and with Mia Kane of UCLA close on her heels, Mayfield's competitiveness took over. She fought back into first place and made a great move the last 700 meters to finish in 16:30.62, breaking her own school record set at last spring's Drake Relays.
 
Mayfield's time is currently the top mark in D-III this season by more than a minute and puts her in excellent condition for a spot at the national championships in late May.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Blanchette, Mayfield, and the rest of the Knights are scheduled to compete at the Hamline Invitational on Saturday, April 1 in St. Paul.