Kathleen Merchant shattered her own school record in the javelin, posting the best mark in the nation among NCAA Division III athletes, to lead the St. Lawrence University women's track and field team to a win at the three-team Ice Broken Open on Saturday afternoon at Merrick-Pinkard Track Complex.

Merchant broke the record by 2.44 meters on her first attempt of the day, launching the javelin 45.95 meters. She improved her mark by 29 more centimeters on her next attempt, posting a 46.24-meter performance. The mark is more than two-and-a-half meters better than the next-best performance by an NCAA Division III athlete this year.

Merchant added wins in the hammer throw (38.30 meters) and the shot put (12.39 meters) to help the Saints score 118 points. Plattsburgh State was second with 107 points, while SUNY Potsdam was third with six points.

Isabel Caprood also won multiple events for the Saints, posting a personal-best time of 13.52 to win the 100-meter dash and also winning the 100 hurdles. Haylei Coolican (3,000 steeplechase) and Catherine Kluchinski (5,000) also had wins with personal-best performances, and Alexa Smith added a win in the 400.

Merchant and her sister Kimberly Merchant, who finished second in the javelin and the shot put and fourth in the hammer throw, were not able to compete in the discus as they were being inducted into Omicron Delta Kappa, the national leadership honor society.

Head Coach Kate Howard
"Today's meet was another great opportunity to compete on our home turf. Last week was a true rust buster, and now we're able to focus on competing and going after our best performances in every event. We're proud of the progress we're making across the event groups. Kath had a remarkable performance in the javelin — not only did she break her own school record but this puts her in terrific standing nationally."

St. Lawrence Event Winners
Kathleen Merchant - Javelin (46.24 meters); Hammer throw (38.30 meters); Shot put (12.39 meters)
Isabel Caprood - 100 hurdles (16.69); 100 (13.52)
Haylei Coolican - 3,000 steeplechase (12:01.10)
Catherine Kluchinski - 5,000 (18:22.70)
Alexa Smith - 400 (1:04.90)

Complete Results