BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – For the third straight year, Fiona Smith of the College of Saint Benedict indoor track and field team has been named the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Indoor Track Athlete of the Year.

Smith is the first student-athlete at Saint Benedict and in MIAC recorded conference history to earn three athlete of the year honors in consecutive years. She won three individual titles and anchored the winning distance medley relay to lead Saint Benedict to second place in the team standings at MIAC Championship on Feb. 22-24. Smith was honored in a vote of the league coaches after her sterling performance this past weekend at the league championships. Also recognized by the league was the individuals and relay squads earning All-MIAC and honorable mention All-MIAC honors.

A 12-time All-American, Smith was a major contributor as the CSB indoor track and field team finished with 120 team points for second in the MIAC team standings. The team point total was the most since Saint Benedict was second with 122 points in 2014.  

On Saturday, Feb. 24, Smith had a facility record of 9:46.83 as she won her third straight 3,000-meters race at the MIAC Championship. A senior mathematics major from Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Smith won the 3K by 12.66 seconds in a third dominating performance in three individual events. On Friday (Feb. 23), she was part of three All-MIAC titles. She started the day at 4:30 p.m., and set a MIAC Championship record of 16:40.72 in capturing the 5,000-meters for a third straight year. She finished 38 seconds ahead of second place Helen Cross of Carleton in a dominating individual performance.

Incredibly, just an hour later on Friday (Feb. 23), Smith was back on the track and won the mile in 5:03.93, finishing nearly three seconds ahead of second place Mary Blanchart of Carleton (5:06.19).   To cap the night off, Smith helped lead Saint Benedict to the distance medley relay title with a clocking of 12:22.85. Smith, who has been part of seven career indoor All-MIAC titles, anchored a team of freshman Taylor Radaich, junior Emerson Knapp, and Lucy Lyngen as that team finished just .41 from a championship record (12:22.44, Carleton, 2022).

The senior standout now has won or been part of a combined 15 winning indoor/outdoor All-MIAC titles in her career. Of that total, she has 13 individual titles and has 17 total All-MIAC performances. In NCAA DIII, Smith is ranked first in the 5,000-meters with an all-time NCAA DIII-best of 15:50.48 at the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener in Boston in December, 2023. She ranks first in the 3,000-meters by clocking 9:23.40 on Feb. 9 at South Dakota State Indoor Classic. Smith is also fifth in the mile with her 4:50.21 clocking at the Gopher Classic on Feb. 3. She will defend her indoor national titles in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters on March 7-9 in Virginia Beach, Va.

In total, the Bennies had 10 All-MIAC performances, which matched the program-best from 2023. Aside from Smith, sophomore pole vault standout Jaylyn Ahlberg captured the pole vault title at 3.76M – 12-4-00, a mark which ranks second in program history and among the top 20 nationally. First-year Taylor Radaich was part of two All-MIAC honors, including finishing second in the 1,000-meters while running on the DMR. Junior Kalli Smith finish second in the 800-meters as she clocked a career-best fifth-best all-time at CSB. In the 60-meters, senior Kate Gallagher was third with a school record for the fourth time this indoor season. In the long jump, first-year Sabriya Farquharson was third with the fourth-best mark in program history. In addition, CSB was third in the 4x400-meter relay, which clocked the school's seventh best time in program history. In addition, CSB had five individuals and the 4x200-meter relay earn honorable mention All-MIAC.

The top three finishers in each individual event and the top three teams in each relay at the 2024 MIAC Indoor Track & Field Championships received All-MIAC honors. Finishers 4-6 in each event were given honorable mention distinction.  

All-MIAC –  
Pole Vault – Jaylyn Ahlberg, So., 1^st, 3.76M – 12-4-00
3,000-meters – Fiona Smith, Sr., 1st, 9:46.83
5,000-meters – Fiona Smith, Sr., 1^st, 16:40.72 (championship record)
Mile – Fiona Smith, Sr., 1^st, 5:03.93
800-meters – Kalli Smith, Jr., 2^nd, 2:18.32
60-meters – Kate Gallagher, Sr., 3^rd, 7.84 (school record)
1,000-meters – Taylor Radaich, FY,  2^nd, 3:04.96
Long Jump – Sabriya Farquharson, FY, 3^rd, 5.33M – 17-06.00
4x400-meter relay – Sidela Nyuga, Mirijana Ganley, Emerson Knapp, Lauren Berg, 3rd, 4:04.42
Distance Medley Relay – Taylor Radaich, Emerson Knapp, Lucy Lyngen, Fiona Smith,  1^st, 12:22.85

Honorable Mention All-MIAC 
4x200-meter relay –  Kate Gallagher, Grace Buntrock, Mirijana Ganley, Tiana Johnson, 4^th, 1:46.91
1,000-meters– Kalli Smith, 6^th, 3:05.93
Triple Jump – Sabriya Farquharson, 6^th, 10.62M - 34-10.25 
Pole Vault – Ming Li Raidt, 5^th, 3.35M – 10-11.75
Shot Put – Haley Joos, 6^th, 11.80M - 38-08.75
Pentathlon – Justus, Floren, 4th, 2,963; Ellie Selisker, 5^th, 2881