ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Bethel University women's track and field team ran back into action Friday night at the St. Thomas Invite after a two-week break following the Bethel Open.  The Royal women put together a well-rounded performance, even breaking a school record in the process.

"I thought it was a great way to continue the beginning of our indoor season," assessed head coach Andrew Rock. 

The new record belongs to Alyssa Solberg in the weight throw event, which she won with a distance of 15.92 meters.  However, she was not the only Royal to impress as several teammates put forth strong efforts in both the running and field events.

Junior Mollie Gillberg followed up her season debut by finishing second in the 1-mile run with a time of 5:14.14.  Teammate Annika Halverson continued a strong start to the indoor season, grabbing a second-place finish in 3000-meter event.  Team captain Rebecca Wesley also took home third place in the 1000-meter run with a time of 3:06.25.

In the sprint group, Jillian Krier finished third in the 60-meter dash with a time of 8.21 seconds and fifth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 27.84.  In addition, Paige Thielen captured a second-place finish in the 400-meter dash, while teammates Nicole Balzer and Erin Alpers took the top two spots in the 600-meter event.

To finish off the night, the Royal women won the 4x400 meter relay with a time of 4:12.08.  The team of Thielen, Balzer, Alpers and Wesley beat the second place St. Thomas team by nearly four seconds.

The Bethel women will now prepare for a trip to Northfield, Minnesota on Friday night where St. Olaf College will host the third meet of the indoor season.