ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – If Jessica Milstroh was nervous about competing in the first collegiate swim meet of her career Friday evening, she sure didn’t show it.
Milstroh led the College of Saint Benedict swim and dive team at the St. Kate’s Pentathlon Friday. She finished top-five in three events, top-15 in two more and jumped into the top 10 in CSB history. For her big performance in her first meet as a Bennie, Milstroh is this week’s CSB Athlete of the Week.
To get the pentathlon started, Milstroh took sixth in the 100 fly – CSB’s only finisher in the top 15 in the event. After finishing that race in 1:02.33, she took 15
th in the 100 backstroke in 1:06.76. She was one of three CSB swimmers in the top 15 in the 100 back race.
Milstroh’s third even of the night turned out to be her best. She took fifth in the 100 IM in 1:03.91 – the second-best time in program history, and just a half-second shy of the school record. She finished .03 seconds behind teammate Mikayla Von Wahlde, who set the school record in the event last season, and finished just shy of her own school record on Friday.
Milstroh was the team’s top finisher once again in the 100 breaststroke, taking fourth in 1:11.47, and wrapped up the night with a 15
th-place finish in the 100 free, finishing in 57.75 seconds. She was one of three Saint Benedict swimmers in the top 15 in the event, and one of four in the top 20.
When all five races were completed, swimmers were given scores based on their times and finishes in each of the five events. Milstroh finished fifth overall with 380 points, and was the team’s top finisher. St. Kate’s Jordyn Wentzel was the top individual finisher with 420 points. Molly Johanson and Von Wahlde both finished in the top 20 for Saint Benedict.
Milstroh’s finish also helped Saint Benedict start the 2019-20 season with a second-place finish at the five-team competition. CSB is off now until Saturday, Oct. 26, when it heads back to St. Paul for the Hamline Invite.
