ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Macalester College women's track and field team wrapped up the 2017 MIAC Championships in spectacular fashion with a win in the 4x400 meter relay. The event win pushed the Scots into fifth place overall in the meet, the highest team finish in a decade. The team scored 72.5 points, while host St. Thomas was the overall winner.

In the relay, freshman Victoria Casarrubias (Boulder, Colo./Fairview) opened, followed by sophomore Phoebe Aguiar (Prairie Villiage, Kan./Shawnee Mission East), who moved the team into first and the Scots never looked back. Senior Anik Regan (Tucson, Ariz./University) and junior Hannah Sonsalla (Stoughton, Wis./Stoughton) brought home the conference title and All-MIAC honors in a time of 4:01.13.

Sonsalla earned all-conference accolades as an individual in the 200-meter dash, where she took second in a school record time of 25.66. The previous record of 26.10 was set by Ana Armitage in 2011. Senior Kara Komoto (Rice Lake, Wis./Rice Lake) came out of the slow heat laying down a 26.28 to place sixth overall in the 200.

In the 4x200-meter relay, Regan, Sonsalla, freshman Lily Schlieman (Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou) and Komoto combined to take fourth place in 1:46.97.
 
Senior Kimber Meyer (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) closed out an impressive double, earning her second all conference honor of the meet with a second-place finish in the 3000-meter run. She was just edged at the line in a season best time of 10:05.46.
 
In the 600-meter dash, Casarrubias ran a personal best 1:38.72 to finish fourth and score for the Scots. Also scoring was senior Natalie Prescott (Roscoe, Ill. / Hononegah) who reeled off a personal best 3:06.22 in the 1000-meter run to take eighth.

It was a meet in which every point counted and senior Meghan Klapper (Sudbury, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury) provided two points with a seventh-place finish in the high jump, clearing 1.51 meters (4-11.5).

"Everyone exceeded expectations, and it was a true team effort," head coach Margaret Gehring said. "Those who scored, those who didn't, all contributed the kind of performances and energy that made this possible. I'm especially proud of our seniors for setting the tone and leading the way."

The 4x400-meter relay crown was the first conference title in Gehring's three-year tenure as head coach for Macalester. As a team, the Scots' fifth-place finish was the program's best since the 2007 squad placed fourth.

For most of the Scots, the MIAC championships were the culmination of the indoor season. Depending on qualifying times, some will go on to compete at the St. Olaf Last Chance Meet on Mar. 3, with hopes of moving on to NCAA Division III Nationals Mar. 10-11 in Naperville, Ill.

Click here for Saturday's results