MINNEAPOLIS — The University of Minnesota track and field program begins the 2026 calendar on Saturday with the Minnesota Open. The one-day meet is set to take place at the University Fieldhouse, with Northern Iowa and Milwaukee both set to compete against the Maroon and Gold in the Twin Cities. Additionally the ‘U’ has a handful of student-athletes competing in Tallahassee, Fla., at the 46th World Athletics Cross Country Championships on Saturday. 

ABOUT THE MINNESOTA OPEN

The 2026 Minnesota Open begins at 10 a.m. with the men’s pole vault while track events starting at 11:30 a.m. The meet is set to wrap up by 5:15 p.m., with the women’s 4x400m relay starting at 5:05 p.m. and the women’s shot put starting at 4:15 p.m. Additionally, Minnesota will have a small contingent of unattached men’s student-athletes competing on Saturday. The event is free and open to the public to attend. There will not be a livestream of the event, but fans can follow live results via Wayzata Results. 

ABOUT THE WORLD ATHLETICS XC CHAMPIONSHIPS

Minnesota’s cross country program will have three current student-athletes and one signee compete in Tallahassee in the U20 section of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships on January 10. The event, taking place at Apalachee Regional Park, features three Gophers on Team USA and one on Team Canada. Salvador Wirth is the lone men’s representative for the red, white and blue while Norah Hushagen and Avery Marasco-Johnson will run on the women’s side. Signee Oliver Crowe, of St. Catharines, Ontario, will also compete in the U20 section in Florida after he finished sixth at the Canadian Cross Country Championships in a time of 25:15.8 back in late November. The women’s U20 6K race begins at 9:20 a.m. CT with the men’s section starting at 9:55 a.m. CT. The event can be streamed live on Peacock with live results available via the World Athletics live results platform. 

LAST TIME OUT

Led by two-time defending Big Ten weight throw champion Anthonett Nabwe’s wins in the weight throw and shot put, the University of Minnesota women’s track and field program secured seven event wins at the M City Classic at the University Fieldhouse on December 5. Both of Nabwe’s winning marks in the shot put (16.40m | 53-9 3/4) and weight throw (23.74m | 77-10 3/4) were meet records. 

Additionally, the Maroon and Gold had four event wins come via unattached student-athletes with three being men’s victories. True freshman Ayisat Adebayo was the lone women’s unattached winner in the triple jump with a leap of 12.26m (40-2 3/4). The most notable men’s win of the day came via Zion Campbell in the 60m, stopping the clock in a University Fieldhouse facility record time of 6.59. 

UP NEXT

The ‘U’ will head out to Lincoln, Neb., for the Graduate Classic, the first road meet of 2026, from January 16-17. Minnesota will not return home until January 30, at the Jack Johnson Classic. 

For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota cross country and track and field team on X.com (Twitter) and Instagram (@GopherCCTF) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the season.

HOUSTON – Jordana Price, a long-time coach with significant recruiting expertise, has joined the Houston Volleyball program as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator, Head Coach David Rehr announced Thursday.
 
Price brings a wealth of additional experience to Rehr’s coaching staff, with stops at Tulane, Florida State, South Alabama and Valdosta State after playing as a student-athlete for Florida State and a professional playing career overseas.
 
“I am excited for Jordana to join us at Houston,” Rehr said. “Her experience as a head coach and recruiting coordinator will be a valuable asset to the program.”
 
Price most recently coached at Tulane, a position she held for four seasons starting in 2022. During her tenure with the Green Wave, she mentored First Team All-American Conference selection and 2023 American Conference Freshman of the Year Avery Burks. Burks was Tulane’s first American Conference Freshman of the Year as well as their fifth overall and first First-Team All-AC honoree since 2020. 
 
Prior to that, she spent five years as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator for Florida State. She helped lead the Seminoles to five All-America honors and four NCAA Tournament appearances. The Seminoles never finished lower than fifth in the ACC while Price was on staff, including a runner-up finish in the 2018 campaign. As recruiting coordinator, she managed the recruitment of a Top 15 class in 2021. 
 
She served as the lead middle trainer and blocking coach for a 2019 squad that ended the season ranked second in the NCAA in blocks per set. Two of Price’s most successful recruits were middle blockers Taryn Knuth and Emma Clothier, who both earned All-ACC honors and were named All-Americans. Taryn was also nominated as the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year, awarded AVCA National Player of the Week and ACC Scholar-Athlete of the year. During Price’s time at FSU, Knuth (.549) and Clothier (.483) finished first and second in the country in hitting percentage, respectively.
 
In tandem with her collegiate coaching, Price participated in the inaugural Team USA National Training Development Program in 2021 when she worked with the U15/U16 classes. The series focused on several key areas for the young athletes to develop their games. Since then, Price has served with the National Training Development Program in 2021 and 2023-2026 in various series and age groups.
 
In 2019, Price served as the assistant coach of the U.S.A. Florida Region Girls International Select Team which won the silver medal at the 2019 High Performance Championships.
 
Her success as a coach at FSU helped her earn AVCA 30 Under 30 honors in 2018. 
 
Before returning to FSU as a coach, Price served as an assistant coach at South Alabama. During her two-year stint with the Jaguars from 2015 to 2017, she helped the team to its best finish in the Sun Belt Conference and its best start to the season at 7-1 in over three decades. She also helped coach the Jaguars to the highest team attacking percentage since 1987 and the most wins since 1994.
 
Price’s college coaching career started in 2012 at Valdosta State where she served as a graduate assistant and interim head coach. She would go on to graduate Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Marriage and Family Therapy.
 
As a student-athlete at FSU, Price was a part of the 2009 ACC Championship team which finished in the Elite 8 after being seeded third in the NCAA Tournament. She ranked first in blocks and fourth in hitting percentage in the ACC during her career. She received the FSU Volleyball Most Influential Player award and was a 2008 AVCA All-East Honorable Mention and 2009 Honorable Mention All-American.
 
After her college career, Price played professionally as a middle blocker in the Professional Azerbaijan Super League for the Shirvan Club and in the Professional Switzerland LNA League for the Hotel Cristal Volleyball Franches-Montagnes. During this time, she competed against six U.S.A. Senior National team members, won the silver medal at the Swiss Volley Cup Final and claimed a fourth place LNA League finish. 
 
She ended her playing days in the Professional Premier Volleyball League. Price competed for the Indiana Hoosier Exterminators, with the team claiming a gold medal in 2012 at the USA Volleyball Open National Championships. In 2013 with Team Florida, she took home a silver medal in the USA Volleyball Open National Championships.
 
SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Volleyball by providing NIL opportunities or by joining the Point Houston Club which provides financial support directly to Houston Volleyball for needs beyond its operating budget.
 
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarVB on X, formerly known as Twitter, and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team’s Facebook page at UHCougarVB. Fans also can follow the team on Instagram at @UHCougarVB.
 

– UHCougars.com –

WASHINGTON (January 8, 2026) – Howard University men’s and women’s track & field program returns from the winter break for a pair of meets: Rod McCravy Invitational (Jan. 9-10) and Penn Select (Jan. 10).
 
FOLLOW THE ACTION
 
Bison Nation can follow all the action via live results. Penn Select will stream on ESPN+.
 
MEET PREVIEW
 
MEN
 
On the track, senior sprinter Dylan Gaines (Houston) sits 14^th in the country with a 21.52 mark.
 
Fellow classmate Jorim Banque (Yaounde, Cameroon) and sophomore transfer Drew Dillard headline the 60-meter hurdles, clocking in with the 31^st (7.98) and 37^th (8.00) fastest times, respectively.
 
In the field, Dillard ranks 25^th in the high jump (2.07 meters) while fifth-year senior Sean Wray (Stafford, Va.) rounds out at 23^rd in the triple jump (14.94 meters).
 
WOMEN
 
Nationally, five Bison are ranked top 45 in the 60-meter hurdles: Lindsay Johnson (19^th); Gabby White (26^th); Lauren Thompson (36^th); Aniya Woodruff (38^th) and Kimbrel Winfield (45^th).
 
Sprinters graduate Marcia Sey (London, United Kingdom) and junior Yahnari Lyons (Hampton, Ga.) sit 22^nd (7.44) and 33^rd (7.46), respectively, in the 60-meter dash.
 
Lyons and Woodruff (Harrisburg, N.C.) also rank among the nation’s top sprinters in the 200-meter dash, posting 24.11 (11^th) and 24.65 (41^st) times, respectively.
 
Freshman standout Alexis Jones (New Windsor, N.Y.) rounds out HU with a 4:54.89 mark in the mile run, which ranks 34^th in the county.
 
LAST TIMEOUT
 
On Dec. 12, both squads competed in the annual Seahawk Shootout, hosted by Wagner College.
 
On the men’s side, Wray, Dillard and William Shepherd (Plano, Texas) led the charge with victories in the triple jump, 60-meter hurdles and 1000-meter run, respectively.
 
For the women, several Bison took home gold, including Jones claiming the top spot with a new school record in the mile run and senior Temi Banwo (Allen, Texas) earning two wins in the shot put and weight throw.
 
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
 
On Jan. 16-17, HU goes to the Empire State for the annual HBCU Showcase.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Bellarmine University track and field will return to action Friday and Saturday at the University of Kentucky-hosted Rod McCravy Memorial at the Louisville-based Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center.

Competition is set to begin at noon (ET) Friday with the high jump and 11 a.m. Saturday with the pole vault, shot put and triple jump. The event marks the second of six straight indoor meets at Norton SLC for the Knights, who will host the Jan. 16 Bellarmine Open and Jan. 23 PNC Bank Bellarmine Classic.

Bellarmine will be getting into full-throttle competition mode starting with the Rod McCravy Memorial. The Knights have competed in one previous meet, but the Commonwealth College Opener was over a month ago on Dec. 6.

Bellarmine had strong showings in the initial meet, highlighted by junior Amelia Svidal (11.79m) and freshman Tola Taiwo (13.90m) both setting new women’s and men’s indoor program records, respectively, in the triple jump. Svidal bested her own record while Taiwo shattered a mark that had stood since 2017.

In addition, senior Jansen Story placed first in the women’s 1000m, as did senior Zander Hooten in the men’s 60m hurdles.

For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow BUKnights on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.

 

 

 

---

MITCHELL, S.D. — Dakota Wesleyan Track & Field announces the addition of Robert Atwater to the coaching staff as an assistant, bringing with him a plethora of top-end experience as a former college competitor.

Atwater graduated from Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska, with a degree in Sports Management & Digital Marketing in 2025, which is also where he competed as a member of the Warrior Track & Field team for multiple seasons. Atwater is most notably a two-time national champion, claiming titles at the 2024 NAIA Indoor National Championships in the long jump and at the 2025 NAIA Indoor National Championships in the heptathlon. He is also a 12-time All-American, receiving such prestigious distinctions four times in the high jump, four more times in the long jump, twice in the heptathlon, and once in each the triple jump and pole vault. In total, Atwater holds 21 All-Conference honors from the Great Plains Athletic Conference and racked up seven total conference championships, making his winning pedigree a notable addition to the track and field program as a whole.

Coach Atwater also previously won two events at the historic Drake Relays during his time as a competitor and holds many impressive personal records, including a 7′ 2.5″ mark in the high jump, 25′ 3.5″ in the long jump, and a total score of 5396 in the heptathlon. Coach Atwater began his duties on December 22nd of 2025.

---

Don’t forget to follow Dakota Wesleyan University Athletics across all social media platforms! #RollTige