ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict track and field team fought with Mother Nature and cold, wet Minnesota weather all outdoor season. Meets got moved and canceled, and many were run in cold, windy temperatures.
This past weekend in Winona, the weather was finally perfect – and the Bennies took full advantage.
Saint Benedict scored 30 points better than its seed and finished runner-up at the 2022 MIAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Saint Mary’s. For its impressive performance, the track and field team is this week’s CSB Team of the Week.
On paper heading into the meet, the Bennies were supposed to finish behind Bethel, Carleton and St. Olaf, but when all was said and done Saturday evening, CSB finished second behind only Gustavus – the team’s best finish since 2017. CSB scored 117.333 team points – the second-best outdoor point total in program history. Just 4.333 points separated the second through fourth-place teams.
Saint Benedict crowned five conference champions over the course of the weekend – the most in one championship meet in program history. Fiona Smith won the 10K and Justus Floren won the high jump Friday to get the team started, then Tracy Renier (steeplechase), Tiana Johnson (200) and Smith (5K) added three more titles to the team’s total Saturday. The Bennies finished the weekend with six All-MIAC First Team performances, and 13 All-MIAC Honorable Mention honors.
The Bennies weren’t just winning over the weekend – they were winning in style. Tiana Johnson broke the school record in the 200-meter dash – twice – and Smith set the facility 10K record at Saint Mary’s Friday evening. Five other top-10 times or marks in program history were recorded on top of Floren’s top-10 heptathlon score from the week prior at Carleton.
When all was said and done, 21 different Bennies had a hand in scoring for the team over the course of the two-day championship meet to help the team end the year on a high note.
