PASADENA, Calif. — New school records, fast finishes and a host of new entries on the all-time program top-ten lists defined the 2023 season for Caltech Women's Track & Field.

Under the leadership of head coach Kelli Blake, the team made major strides to start the spring before putting up monumental performances in the final few meets of the year.

It all started with a trip to Flagstaff, where the Beavers took on the NAU Ron Mann Classic in their lone indoor meet. There, junior Meg Robertson boasted a new school record in the weight throw, posting a distance of 12.69 meters to finish 12th. The throw placed her ahead of multiple athletes from Division I programs.

The standout continued her strong start in the team's second competition of the season as the group competed at the Pomona-Pitzer All Comers Meet. Robertson – whose personal-best throw in 2022 put her second all-time in the Caltech record books – recorded an explosive 41.23 meter throw, just 0.5 meters behind the winner and 2.67 meters behind her personal best.

Sophomore Sophie Dalfonzo led the charge in the women's 3,000-meters, placing 12th overall with a time of 10:33.93 — a personal record and the all-time Caltech no. 2 time. Behind Dalfonzo came first-year Gigi Pistilli (10:50.80, 17th).

Robertson would go on to make history at the team's first and only home meet of the season, where the group hosted the University of Redlands, Cal Lutheran University and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in a battle of four Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) teams. There, the Nashville native broke the nine-year school record in the hammer throw after she produced a massive 44.45m throw – over half a meter longer than her personal best. Behind Robertson in the event was sophomore Emily Hu, who achieved her best throw of the season, 36.02m, to put herself fifth all-time in the Caltech record books.

Sophomore Lily Randall won the 400-meter race, breaking the tape with a speedy time of 1:03.20 — just a few milliseconds off her personal best.

The group would shift focus to the nearby Oxy Distance Carnival and Spring Break Classic the following weekend, where a crew of Beavers made waves in the 5000m race. Leading the way for the team was Dalfonzo, who placed 18th among 109 total athletes, crossing the line with a time of 18:00.00 exactly. Pistilli finished a few seconds later, clocking a time of 18:12.37 to skyrocket herself to third all-time on the Caltech record board.

The Beavers competed in their second SCIAC Multi-Dual meet on Apr. 1, where several Beavers achieved big PRs; namely, Dalfonzo and senior Lauren Garriques, who both broke five minutes in the 1500-meters for the first time in their careers. Dalfonzo's 4:58.72 was good for ninth among the 30+ competitors while Garriques' 4:59.01 earned her tenth. Pistilli was just moments behind, running a 5:00.54 to grab 12th.

It was a big showing for the throwers at the Apr. 8 Pomona-Pitzer Invite the following weekend, where all three Beavers earned top-15 finishes in at least one event. Robertson's most impressive mark came in the hammer throw, where she earned sixth with a toss of 39.80m. Hu's best work came in the discus with a throw of 30.85m, which earned her a personal record and a spot at eight on the all-time Caltech record list. Sophomore Rucheng Pan placed 15th in the shot put (9.35m) in addition to placing top-twenty in discus and hammer throw.

The prestigious Bryan Clay Invitational a few days later would produce history for the program as Dalfonzo took on the 10,000-meter distance. The standout destroyed both her own personal record and the school record, notching a time of 36:59.04 — more than 38 seconds faster than the previous program record set in 2019. The sophomore ran the first 5,000 meters in 18:45 and closed the second 5K in a scorching 18:14.

The Beavers would take on their final SCIAC multi-dual meet on Apr. 15 in Claremont where the team faced the University of La Verne, Whittier College and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.

Junior Katy Chu highlighted the action after scoring second place in a close and competitive 3,000-meter steeplechase. Just her first time racing the event, Chu's 12:28.28 puts her fifth all-time in the school record sheets.

Randall shot up the program's all-time top-ten board in the 100-meter dash after she posted a 13.38 — a massive personal record that put her fourth on the list.

With the regular conference season complete, all efforts turned to the SCIAC Championships in La Verne on Apr. 29-30. It was a monumental meet for the program, who scored a number of top finishes en route to a successful day across multiple disciplines. After getting topped by La Verne on points earlier in the season, Caltech outscored the hosting Leopards, 35.00 to 15.50.

Dalfonzo yet again stepped up in the distance races, producing a pair of remarkable races in both the 10000m and 5000m distances. The young star achieved second place in Saturday's 10K with a blistering time of 37:12.78 before earning another silver medal in the 5K on Sunday, crossing the line at 17:53.49. The standout earned All-SCIAC honors two times for finishing in the top-three of both events.

Robertson earned a pair of top-five medals in the throwing events after scoring fourth in the discus (36.24) and throwing a personal-record distance in the shot put (10.95m) to place fifth. The big PR lands her second all-time among all athletes in the Caltech shotput history.

Garriques had possibly the biggest race of her life in the 1500m final with a personal-record time of 4:45.27 to place fifth. The veteran destroyed her previous record of 4:53.72, set just one day earlier in the preliminary round. The veteran's best time puts her second all-time in the distance on the Caltech record boards.

First-year Ashwitha Surabhi posted two school top-ten list performances, with the sprinter setting personal bests in both events. The Virginia native now sits at a tie for fifth in the 100m (13.40) and holds the outright ninth spot in the 200m (27.60).

While the majority of Beavers capped their season at the conference championship meet, several ran in the May 6 Oxy Invitational before hitting the offseason — and for one Beaver, it was a historic day of action.

The notable performance again came from Dalfonzo, who set her second school record after earning the 10K top spot earlier in the season. This time, it was the 5K record that she achieved, crossing the line at 17:37.11 to beat out the standing record of 17:50.10. Her record-breaking performance shattered her previous personal best time of 17:53.49 set at the conference championships six days earlier.

In addition to being team MVP, Dalfonzo earned All-Region honors at the conclusion of the season from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. She was awarded the prestigious distinction for posting a top-five time in the 10,000-meter distance this season among all Div. III athletes in the West region. She would later be named Caltech Co-Athlete of the Year by Caltech Athletics at the department's student-athlete celebration.

The team's distance runners will now prepare for the cross country season this fall before joining the rest of the roster in track & field action in the spring.

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