Her personal best time of 2:37:57, set at the 1977 Nike OTC Marathon, was an American record for the distance and made her the fourth best runner worldwide that year.
[1] Merritt took the inaugural honours at the Quad-City Times Bix 7 Mile in July 1975 and then won the Charleston Distance Run the following month – she returned to both competitions in 1976 and retained her titles.
[10] Merritt broke the American record for the distance at the 1977 Nike OTC Marathon in Eugene, Oregon, winning the women's race with a time of 2:37:57.
[16] She was the inaugural winner of the Gate River Run 15K in 1978 and won the second edition of the Ogden Newspapers 20K Classic held that same year.
The Avon Waldniel Marathon in September was a more successful outing, as she was the runner-up to England's Joyce Smith and completed the distance in 2:39:43 – the second fastest of her career.