BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its Athlete of the Week award winners for outdoor track & field and golf on Tuesday. Student-athletes from Carleton, Saint Benedict, St. Catherine, Saint John's, and St. Scholastica claimed the Conference's weekly honors.
The MIAC Athlete of the Week awards are nominated by the Conference's sports information directors and selected by MIAC staff. Throughout the spring season, team sports (baseball, softball, and tennis) Athletes of the Week will be recognized on Monday afternoons, with individual sports (outdoor track & field and golf) announced on Tuesday afternoons. The winners of the latest Athlete of the Week awards are listed below, along with details on their outstanding performances.
To view each sport's 2022-23 Athlete of the Week home page, navigate to the 2022-23 Athlete of the Week archive for complete details on each week's selections and winners.
MIAC Men's Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week
Kevin Arthur
Saint John's University
Sr.
Champlin, Minn. | Champlin Park
Kevin Arthur won both the 100- (10.56) and 200-meter (21.15) dashes, and served as the second leg of SJU’s first-place 4x100-meter relay (41.24) at the University of Minnesota’s Running on Hope Invitational in Minneapolis on 4/26. Arthur’s time in the 200 broke his own program record (21.50) that he set in 2022 and is currently seventh in NCAA Division III this spring, while the time in the 100 is good for 20th in the nation.
MIAC Men's Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week
Brett Hague
Saint John's University
Sr.
Brainerd, Minn.
Brett Hague placed second in the javelin throw with a season-best distance of 63.23 meters (207' 5") at the University of Minnesota's Running on Hope Invitational on 4/26. His distance leads the MIAC and ranks eighth in NCAA Division III this season.
MIAC Women's Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week
Fiona Smith
College of Saint Benedict
Jr.
Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
Fiona Smith broke the MIAC record in the 5,000-meter run at the Drake Relays on 4/27. Smith clocked in at 16:05.43, which surpassed her previous personal best by more than eleven seconds. Her time now ranks as the fourth-fastest in NCAA Division III history.
MIAC Women's Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week
Lily Beneke
The College of St. Scholastica
Jr.
Green Isle, Minn. | Sibley East
Lily Beneke placed second overall and first among NCAA Division III competitors in the hammer throw at the University of Minnesota's Running on Hope Invitational on 4/26. Beneke's throw of 53.42 meters (175' 3") ranks as the 13th-best in NCAA Division III this season and is the second-best throw in program history.
MIAC Men's Golf Athlete of the Week
James Berger
Carleton College
Sr.
Los Altos Hills, Calif. | Gunn
James Berger took home medalist honors at the SJU Spring Invitational over the weekend. He got his tournament started off on the right foot with a birdie on his first hole on 4/29, one of his seven birdies on the weekend to tie for most in the tournament. He was sixth after an even-par (72) opening round but jumped to the top of the leaderboard with a 73 (+2) on 4/30 despite windy conditions that included gusts as high as 40 miles per hour. With a two-day total of 145, Berger posted a one-stroke victory, his third career tournament triumph, and first since winning the Wartburg Spring Invitation on 4/1/2022.
MIAC Women's Golf Athlete of the Week
Kyra Venne
St. Catherine University
So.
Woodbury, Minn. | East Ridge
Kyra Venne led the Wildcats to a dual win over Wartburg on 4/29, shooting a 2-under-par 70 with three birdies and one eagle to earn medalist honors. It was Venne's fifth individual win of 2022-23 and her fourth consecutive medalist performance. The second day of the competition was canceled due to poor weather.