GREENSBORO, N.C. – Senior
Paige Woldt claimed All-America honors in the triple jump with a seventh-place finish and junior
Ellen Mickelson placed ninth in the 1,500-meter run for the St. Olaf College women's track and field team on the final day of the 2021 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday at Irwin Belk Track Complex.
Woldt, who is St. Olaf's record holder in the triple jump both indoors and outdoors, earned the first All-America accolade of her career with a jump of 11.64 meters (38' 2 ¼") on her third attempt in the finals. The senior's seventh-place finish was the best in program history in the outdoor triple jump, as she became the program's second-ever All-American in the event, joining Joy Quaidoo who was eighth in 1994.
The University of Chicago's Isabel Maletich won the national title with a mark of 12.38 meters (40' 7 ½") on her final jump. John Carroll's Courtney Phoennik was the runner-up after jumping 12.31 meters (40' 4 ¾") on the last jump of the event.
After earning the 12th and final spot in the finals during Friday's prelims, Mickelson placed ninth in the final with a personal-best time of 4:33.59, falling one spot short of earning All-America honors. The junior's time was over five seconds faster than her time in the prelims and moved Mickelson up three spots to seventh on St. Olaf's all-time list in the event.
Mickelson's ninth-place finish was the best by an Ole in the event at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships since Andrea Gelle '07 gathered All-America honors with an eighth-place finish in 2007. Gelle is one of eight St. Olaf All-Americans in the event in the NCAA era.
Emily Pomainville of SUNY Geneseo, who broke the all-time NCAA Division III record in the event on Friday, claimed the national title in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:21.26, finishing slightly over two seconds ahead of Ella Baran of Johns Hopkins.
Loras won its second-straight team national championship with 58 points, edging UW-La Crosse by two points for the title. Woldt's two points put St. Olaf in a five-way tie for 59th in the team standings.
