ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – With the momentum of a strong indoor campaign, the College of Saint Benedict track and field team turns the page to spring competition this weekend, opening the outdoor season on its home surface. The Bennies will host the CSB/SJU Optimistic Invitational on Saturday (March 28), at 11:30 a.m.

Season Opener at Home

The meet gets underway at 11:30 a.m. with various field events, including the hammer throw, pole vault, high jump and shot put. Track events open with the 3,000-meter steeplechase at noon, following by the 4x100-meter relays and other running events. After the home meet, CSB will quickly return to action as well, traveling to St. Paul on Monday (March 30) for the Hamline Invitational at Klas Field. The expected start time is 3 p.m., for field events.

Building on 2025 Outdoor Success

Under the direction of veteran head coach Robin Balder Lanoue, the Bennies enter the outdoor season following a successful 2025 campaign that saw them place fifth out of 12 teams at the MIAC Championships with 102.25 points. That performance included six All-MIAC honors, 13 honorable mention selections, two school records and seven marks that landed in the program's all-time top 10.

Key Returners to Watch - Farquharson, Berg, Ahlberg

Leading the group of returners is Sabriya Farquharson (Nassau, Bahamas), the program record holder in the triple jump after a winning leap of 11.76 meters (38-7). She excels in the jumps and has four All-MIAC honors indoor and outdoors with three titles included.  She is joined by Jaylyn Ahlberg (Shoreview, Minn.), who captured her second consecutive outdoor pole vault title last season and now owns five conference championships overall. She recently won her third straight indoor pole vault title at the MIAC Championships.

In the sprints and hurdles, Lauren Berg (Bemidji, Minn.) returns after rewriting the record books in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing second at last year's conference meet in a school-record time of 1:02.18. She has 14 career- All-MIAC honors (includes honorable mention honors). Distance standout Mary Kenney (Saint Paul, Minn.) also returns after placing third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a personal-best 11:17.98, the third-fastest time in program history. 

Sophomore Allison Banse (Mankato, Minn.), who was fourth outdoor with a 39.82m - 130-07 throw in the discus - mark that ranks second all-time. She was also All-MIAC indoors in the shot put by throwing 12.68 meters (41-7.25), a mark that ranks third all-time in program history. Others expected to add strength include All-MIAC and 60-meter hurdles record holder Juslene Chea (St. Michael, Minn.) and other returners like Kiera Stommes (Eden Valley, Minn.) who was fourth in the high jump indoors and fifth at the 2025 outdoor meet and Lila Raidt (Waconia, Minn.), who has All-MIAC honors both indoors and outdoors. The Bennies also have strength throughout the four classes and many will provide major contributions.

Indoor Season Recap

CSB's outdoor season follows a fifth-place finish (76.5 points) at the MIAC Indoor Championships, where the Bennies produced six All-MIAC performances. Ahlberg led the way with a conference title in the pole vault (3.53m), while Raidt finished tied for second in the same event. Chea placed second in the 55-meter hurdles, Banse took third in the shot put, and Farquharson added a pair of top-three finishes in the triple and long jumps.

Additional honorable mention All-MIAC performances came from Berg in both the 600- and 800-meter runs, Stommes in the high jump, McKenna Flinn (Redwood Valley, Minn.) in the pole vault and Chea in the triple jump, rounding out a well-balanced indoor season that now transitions to the outdoor stage.