WAVERLY, Iowa – Senior Mary Blanchard broke the Carleton College women's track & field team record while winning the 800-meter run at the Wartburg Qualifier.
 
Blanchard clocked a time of 2:13.78 to come from behind and win her heat and finished second overall in the event. That mark was nearly three seconds better than her career best for the indoor 800 and almost a full second better than the previous team mark of 2:14.72 set by Katherine Geist at the 2022 MIAC Indoor Championships.
 
"I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to compete today," said Blanchard. It's really fun when everything come together for a great race."
 
Blanchard already owns the school outdoor record of 2:11.31, which she set at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
 
Hannah Preisser also competed at the meet, taking second place in the 3,000-meter run with a personal-best time of 9:55.64.
 
The Knights now wait and who will receive the opportunity to compete at the NCAA Division III Championships on March 8-9 in Virginia Beach, Va. The final list of meet participants will be available on NCAA.org on Sunday evening.
 
With today's performance Blanchard moved into 18th place on the NCAA Division III national performance list. Helen Cross is currently 18th on the 3000-meter list, while Phoebe Ward and Sophie McManus are 21st and 22nd, respectively, in the same event and hoping some runners scratch to allow them to slide into the national meet.