BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- After breaking a pair of records and clocking the third-best 10,000-meter time ever in NCAA DIII, Fiona Smith of the College of Saint Benedict track and field team has been named the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athlete Conference Athlete of the Week.

Smith placed fifth in the Women's 10,000-meter Run Elite at the Mount Sac Relays with a Saint Benedict school andMIAC record of 33:23.89 in a loaded field which included NCAA DI and DII runners.

A mathematics major from Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Smith not only broke the school record but had the third best 10K clocking all-time in NCAA DIII. She also snapped the 40-year all-time record for 10,000 meters in the MIAC of 34:22.58 which was set in 1983 by Debbie Thometz of St. Thomas.

Smith, who was named the CSB Athlete of the Week on Monday (April 17), earned her 10th career outdoor MIAC Athlete of the Week honor and the second of the 2023 season. The junior standout,now has 20 MIAC career honors in track and field/cross country with her eighth in 2022-23.  

At the Mount Sac Relays, Smith had 400-meter times ranging from 1:17.84 to 122.20 during 25 laps around the oval.  At the 1,600-meter mark, she was at 5:16.07 after running a 1:18.41 lap. At the 3,200-meter mark, she was at 10:35.12 and was clocked at 17:13.83 at 5,200-meters. At the 7,600 meter mark she was clocked at 25:15.19 and at 29.21.07 at 8,800-meters before finishing at 33:23.89, which broke her own school record by nearly 1:10 (34:33.37, CSB/SJU Invitational and Multi in Collegeville, Minn., on April 9, 2022).

Already this outdoor season, Smith has recorded the second best 10K time 33:23.89; the top 5,000 meter time of 16:26.20 at the Wartburg Outdoor Select on April 1 and the third best 1,500 meters of 4:31.94 on April 7 at the St. Thomas Tomcat Invitational.

The nine-time All-American became the first CSB student-athlete to win DIII national championships and did it both in the 3,000-meters and 5,000 meters at the NCAA DIII Indoor Championships on March 10-11 in Birmingham, Ala.