Milton graduate breaks college marathon record
2024 Milton-Union graduate and current runner for Indiana University East, Savanna Smith, has had an incredible first season of collegiate cross country. Her biggest accomplishment was breaking the college's freshman marathon record.
In high school, Smith was known for her outstanding performances on the cross country course. On the track she was named Athlete of the Year for both sports as well as holding course records. She decided to continue her running career into college, and her list of accomplishments has only grown.
To recap her first year, she raced a total of eight races. Smith shared that her races are 6,000 meters long, but they occasionally run 5K’s. A 5k is the standard high school race distance, so coming to college, she was faced with competing at a longer distance than what she was used to. She described her season as “a rollercoaster” for a variety of reasons. Smith says her summer training was “very inconsistent” and that she also dealt with sickness halfway through her season. But in light of all that, she explains that she accomplished everything she wanted to for her freshman year.
Despite any hardships she may have faced during her season, breaking Indiana University East’s freshman marathon record may outshine it all. When talking to Smith about why she wanted to qualify for the California marathon after an entire cross-country season, she explained that she heard her teammates talking about how they wanted to try to qualify. Smith said she “joined them for a two hour run and really enjoyed it”. “I was super nervous at first”, Smith shares. “I had never run more than 20 miles, but the adrenaline helps a lot.”
She finished her race with a time of 3:43.13 and claims she is “very excited to break the freshman record.. hoping it stays for a while.” She tells the Gazette that the marathon was one of the best experiences of her life. “The course is so beautiful… you start in the suburbs of Sacramento and finish at the capital… I would definitely do it again next year.”
To round out all of the personal success she has had this year, she shared all that her team has done as well. This includes winning the conference meet and qualifying for Nationals in Missouri. They had season bests in the 6K, and they stand at 29th in the nation.
Smith says she will be taking a week off and then heading straight into training for the indoor track season, where she will be getting into speed workouts and lifting more. A huge congratulations to Savanna Smith. We are excited to see what’s to come in the next three years.