BOZEMAN, Mont. — Montana State track and field heads to the heart of TrackTown, USA, this week, competing at the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. 

Action from Historic Hayward Field begins Wednesday and continues through Saturday. The entire meet will be televised on ESPN and ESPN2, with online streaming available through ESPN+. 

Concluding one of the greatest seasons in program history, Montana State will have a record seven student-athletes across four entries donning the Blue and Gold in Eugene. 

The Cats’ four entries are tied for the third-most in program history behind only the five in 2023 and 2022. The Cats also qualified four to the national meet in 2015. 

The two entries on the women’s side mark just the fourth time in program history that MSU has qualified multiple athletes on the women’s side (2015, 2012, 2006). 

Rob McManus (3,000 meter steeplechase), Harvey Cramb (1,500 meters), Hailey Coey (long jump), and the women’s 4×400 meter relay team of Olivia Lewis, Peyton Garrison, Giulia Gandolfi, Caroline Hawkes, and alternate Jadyn VanDyken will all compete at the American cathedral of track and field after rising to the top at the NCAA West First Rounds two weeks ago in College Station, Texas. 

McManus, a senior from Cashmere, Washington, makes his third straight appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. The current face of ‘Steeple U’ is making his fourth career appearance at the NCAA Championships after placing 15th in the mile at NCAA indoor nationals in March. 

Over the past five years, the Cats have sent ten total qualifiers to the national meet in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, with Duncan Hamilton going three times, Levi Taylor three times, McManus three times, and Owen Smith once. 

McManus, a three-time All-American, finished 16th in the 3,000 meter steeplechase in 2023 and 13th in 2024—one spot out of making the final after being passed in the final moments of last year’s semifinal by teammate Levi Taylor. 

This season, McManus enters the competition holding the sixth-fastest time in the field (8:26.83), qualifying for the national meet on the back of a dominating performance at the NCAA West Regional, where he recorded the third-fastest time (8:30.65). 

The two-time defending Big Sky champion in the steeplechase is just the fourth Bobcat in history to compete at three straight NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, joining Levi Taylor (2022-24), Duncan Hamilton (2021-23), and Nick Lam (2007-09). The distance runner is also one of just five Bobcats ever to earn at least three All-American honors (Taylor, Hamilton, Lyle Weese, Shannon Butler), and with a fourth All-American nod this week, would rise to second all-time behind  his former running mate in Hamilton, a six-time All-American in track and field. 

“Rob has been comfortable in all of his races but especially in the steeple races this year,” Weese said. “It’s just an event that he has a high level of comfort and a lot of confidence in. I think a key for him is just taking that into the race and not over-thinking it, but just punching his way through to the final while not worrying too much about saving energy or anything else, just finding a way to get to the final.” 

McManus runs in the first of two heats of the national semifinals for the 3,000 meter steeplechase on Wednesday night, toeing the line at 4:38 p.m. PT/5:38 p.m. MT on ESPN. The top five finishers from each of the two 12-man heats advance to Friday night’s final, with the next two-fastest times rounding out the field. 

Cramb, a sophomore from Brisbane, Australia, makes his first appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 1,500 meters. It’s the second career appearance at a national meet for Cramb, who placed 11th in the mile at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Virginia Beach in March. 

The reigning Big Sky Champion cruised through both of his races at the NCAA West Regional in Texas two weeks ago, winning his first round heat before taking an auto-qualifier in the national quarterfinal. The Australian owns the 23rd-fastest time in the country this year (3:37.31). 

“Harvey is a great championship racer,” Weese said. “The way that he likes to race with a fast close fits in really well at these meets, so the 1,500 is a really good event for him and something that he’s really comfortable in. I anticipate that he will go out and compete really and has a really good chance to fight his way through to the final on Friday.” 

Cramb runs in the second of two heats in the 1,500 meters on Wednesday night, with the start time scheduled for 4:21 p.m. PT/5:21 p.m. MT on ESPN and ESPN+. The top five finishers from each of the two 12-man heats advance to Friday night’s final, with the next two-fastest times rounding out the field. 

Coey, a junior from Billings, makes her first appearance at the NCAA Championships in the long jump, becoming the first Bobcat on either the men’s or women’s side to ever qualify in the event. 

The school record-holder won a Big Sky title and set the conference record indoors before carrying that momentum outside this spring, where she set the school record in the sand with the second-best jump in conference history (21-03.50). Seeded ninth in the West entering the Regional meet, the Montana native came up clutch with a 21-foot leap to place eighth and secure one of 12 tickets to Eugene this week. 

“Hailey compared to pretty much every long jumper is one of the most consistent jumpers in the entire country,” Weese said. “In a meet like this where you just get three attempts to make it through to the final, I think she’s in a really good situation and has a reasonable chance of making it to the final because of her consistency throughout the year. She has been over in the high-20’s and low 21-feet in almost all of her competitions throughout the year, so obviously it would be great if she hit a really great mark, but at the same time you don’t always have to do that—you just have to do what you’ve done before in order to advance to the next part of the competition.” 

Ahead of the conference meet in Sacramento in early May, Coey told Parker Cotton of the Bozeman Daily Chronicle “In the past, I used to compare myself to the rest of the conference. Now, I compare myself to the rest of the country.”  

The junior has now backed that up with her performances in the postseason, and will get another chance to do so on Thursday in the long jump at the NCAA Championships, scheduled for 5:40 p.m. PT/6:40 p.m. MT on ESPN+. 

Rounding out Montana State’s contingent of national qualifiers is the women’s 4×400 meter relay team, making history as the first-ever Bobcat relay to make it to the national meet on either the men’s or women’s side. 

The quartet of Olivia Lewis, Peyton Garrison, Giulia Gandolfi, and Caroline Hawkes punched their ticket to Eugene with a heroic effort at the NCAA West Regionals, grabbing the final spot out of the final heat on the final day in College Station with the second-fastest race in school history (3:34.31). 

Montana State is one of only two teams outside of the Power Four conferences to race in the 4×400 meter relay (Harvard). 

“Having a relay here is very exciting,” Weese said. “Like we’ve talked about before, it just takes a one-off for an individual to make it through, but it takes at least four and oftentimes five or six to get a relay through to the NCAA Championships. Just overall, we’re really excited about that—it’s a great sign of where that long sprints program is at. The 4×400 at the NCAA Championships is crazy—when you look at the teams, they would be some of the top teams for a lot of the nations throughout the world that would be put together for the world championships or Olympic Games teams. They fit in with that really well because of what they’ve done this season. I think this is an environment where they could even take a couple seconds off their school record.” 

The Cats will run out of lane two on Thursday night in the first of three heats at 8:36 p.m. MT on ESPN. The top two finishers from each eat plus the next three fastest times advance to Saturday night’s final. 

“It’s another step forward for us getting this many individuals to the NCAA Championships and getting a relay here while continuing the recent history of getting a lot of men’s distance through,” Weese said. “Obviously it’s so exciting having Hailey here in the long jump. Both the long jump and 4×400 are very, very challenging events to get people through to the NCAA finals, so we’re just really excited about that and can’t wait to see what they do this week. We do have a lot of newcomers where this is their first NCAA meet. Rob McManus is the only one who has competed at these outdoor championships before, so I’m sure there’s a lot of excitement throughout the group. However, there are also a lot of individuals who have a lot of championship experience, whether it’s those pressure situations at regionals or conference championships.” 

MEET SCHEDULE 

Wednesday:  

Thursday: 

• Hailey Coey, long jump (6:40 p.m. MT) 
• 4×400 meter relay (8:36 p.m. MT) 

#GoCatsGo 

NCAA OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS: MEET INFORMATION | SCHEDULE OF EVENTS | LIVE STATS | WEDNESDAY LIVE VIDEO | WEDNESDAY LIVE VIDEO (POLE VAULT) | FRIDAY LIVE VIDEO
 
AKRON, Ohio – University of Akron track and field redshirt senior pole vaulter Hunter Garretson (Newcomerstown, Ohio) and freshman Bismack Kipchirchir (Eldama Ravine, Kenya) are set to vie for national titles when the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted at the University of Oregon at Historic Heyward Field gets underway on Wednesday (June 11) in Eugene, Ore.

Coverage of the meet as well as live field event coverage will be provided on ESPN+ each day of competition.

UP NEXT: Garretson and Kipchirchir will represent the Zips at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships this week.

Garretson will compete for the Zips in the men’s pole vault at 7:35 p.m. ET on Wednesday (June 11) before Kipchirchir runs in the semifinal round of the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase at 7:38 p.m. ET. The finals of the steeplechase are slated for 8:24 p.m. ET on Friday (June 13).

Garretson, who owns the No. 11 mark (18-1.75/5.53m) in the NCAA this season, will be making his third NCAA Outdoor Championship appearance in the men’s pole vault after earning First-Team All-America accolades on the strength of a runner-up effort at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, where he eclipsed 18-8.25 (5.70m).

Earlier this season, he garnered First-Team All-America honors at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

 

Garretson captured his ninth overall Mid-American Conference title with a mark of 18-0.50 (5.50m) at MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 15 in Athens, Ohio, before posting a qualifying mark of 17-5.75 (5.33m) at the NCAA East Preliminary Round on May 28 in Jacksonville, Fla.

 

Kipchirchir will be making his NCAA Championship debut after registering a qualifying time of 8:42.88 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the NCAA East Preliminary Round on May 30 in Jacksonville, Fla. Kipchirchir also collected the MAC title in the event on May 16 in Athens, Ohio, in a time of 8:45.34.

 

Kipchirchir enters competition with the No. 8 time in the NCAA this season in the steeplechase crossing the line in a school-record time of 8:27.51 at the Bryan Clay Invitational.

AKRON MEN’S QUALIFIERS (Qualifying Rank-Qualifying Mark):

Pole Vault: Hunter Garretson (No. 11-18-1-75/5.53m)

3,000M Steeplechase: Bismack Kipchirchir (No. 8-8:27.51)

For the complete list of entries, please log on to NCAA.com

NCAA OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS MEET SCHEDULE: The NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championship meet begins at 3 p.m. ET at Heyward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon on Wednesday (June 11), with the start of the men’s decathlon. Field events start with the men’s hammer at 4:30 p.m. ET before running events kick off with the men’s 4×100 relay semifinals at 7:05 p.m. ET and conclude with the running of the men’s 4×400 relay at 10:36 p.m. ET.

The second day opens with the men’s 110-meter hurdles as part of the decathlon at 12:45 p.m. ET. Field events start with the women’s hammer at 4:30 p.m. ET, before running events begin with the semifinal round of the women’s 4×100 relay at 7:05 p.m. ET. The semifinals of the women’s 4×400 relay closes out the day’s action at 10:36 p.m. ET.

Third-day competition commences on Friday with the women’s 100-meter hurdles as part of the heptathlon at 2:45 p.m. ET. The men’s high jumps kick off field events at 7:30 p.m. ET, before the running events take the track with the final of the men’s 4×100 relay at 8:02 p.m. ET. The men’s 4×400 relay final will conclude the men’s portion of the championship at 10:36 p.m. ET.

The final day of the championship kicks off with the women’s long jump for the heptathlon at 5 p.m. ET. The women’s high jump starts field events at 8:30 p.m. ET, before the final of the women’s 4×100 relay is slated to begin at 9:02 p.m. ET. The women’s 4×400 relay final will conclude the women’s portion of the championship at 11:21 p.m. ET.

 

For a complete schedule of events, log on to NCAA.com. Live results (click here) will be available throughout the meet as well as live video (click here).

The tentative schedule of events for the Zips at the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships are as follows;

Wednesday, June 11

7:35 p.m. ET – Hunter Garretson (Men’s Pole Vault)

7:38 p.m. ET – Bismack Kipchirchir (Men’s 3,000-Meter Steeplechase Semifinals)

 

Friday, June 13

8:24 p.m. ET – Bismack Kipchirchir (Men’s 3,000-Meter Steeplechase Finals)

 

NCAA CHAMPIONS: Akron’s entries will be looking to add to the tradition of the Zips’ track and field program, which already includes nine individual national champions. Christi Smith made history in 2000 when she became the first national champion in school history, capturing gold in the heptathlon. Stevi Large was the next to accomplish the feat, winning the women’s hammer throw in 2009. Annika Roloff captured the women’s pole vault in 2014. Shawn Barber became the school’s first male champion claiming the indoor pole vault title in 2014 before again earning the crown at the 2015 NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Clayton Murphy became Akron’s first-ever NCAA champion in a running event winning the indoor 800 meters and outdoor 1,500 meters in 2016. In 2017, Matt Ludwig claimed the national title in the men’s pole vault.

 

TOP TIMES IN THE MAC: The Zips have registered 13 overall top performances in the Mid-American Conference during the outdoor campaign.

Outdoor

 
NATIONAL RANKINGS: The University of Akron track and field teams have garnered recognition for their efforts during the 2025 outdoor season as the Zips are rated among the Top 30 in the Event Squad rankings for six events released on May 20, 2025, as part of the United States Track and Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field National Rating Index.

Akron is rated ninth nationally in the men’s pole vault, 13th in the men’s shot put, 17th in the men’s hammer and women’s hammer, 21st in the men’s discus and 22nd in the women’s discus.

 

ZIPS RANK AMONG NATION’S BEST IN 2025 TFRRS RANKINGS: Akron have four individual student-athletes ranked in the Top 50 nationally by the Track and Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS) for the 2025 outdoor campaign as Bismack Kipchirchir is rated eighth in the nation in the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase (8:27.51).

 

Additionally, Hunter Garretson is 11th in the nation in the men’s pole vault (18-1.75/5.53m), redshirt junior Owen Wendl (Medina, Ohio) is 13th in the men’s discus (200-11/61.23m) and sophomore Mason Birch (Strongsville, Ohio) is 48th in the men’s high jump (7-0.25/2.14m).

 

OWEN WENDL NAMED MAC MOST OUTSTANDING PERFORMER: Owen Wendl was honored by the Mid-American Conference as its 2025 Outdoor Track and Field Men’s Most Outstanding Field Performer of the Year, the league unveiled on May 22.

Wendl captured a pair of MAC titles winning the men’s discus and shot put with a pair of career-best marks. Wendl capped his championship efforts claiming the title in the men’s discus, the fourth MAC title of his Zips’ career, with a career-best mark of 200-10 (61.23m), just off the meet record of 201-9 and conference record of 205-9. His performance stands as the No. 13 mark in the United States in the discus in 2025.

Wendl opened the weekend capturing the men’s shot put for his third career league title with a career-best throw of 60-2.50 (18.35m). His effort stands as the No. 71 mark in the NCAA this season and the No. 2 effort in outdoor program history.

 

ZIPS CAPTURE MAC MEN’S OUTDOOR TEAM TITLE: The University of Akron men’s track and field team made it back-to-back-to-back Mid-American Conference Outdoor Track and Field titles capturing the program’s 11th overall outdoor crown at the MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships hosted by Ohio at Goldsberry Track on May 17.

 

AKRON EARNS TRIO OF MAC CHAMPIONSHIP HONORS: Akron Director of Track and Field/Cross Country Kendra Reimer-Gonzales was named as the MAC Men’s Coach of the Year.

Bismack Kipchirchir was tabbed as the Most Valuable Performer of the Meet and league’s Men’s Track Freshman of the Year.

Freshman Rukia Omulisia (Nairobi, Kenya) was selected as the MAC’s Women’s Track Freshman of the Year

 

USTFCCCA HONORS GARRETSON AS GREAT LAKES REGIONAL FIELD ATHLETE OF THE YEAR:

Hunter Garretson was honored by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) as the Great Lakes Region Men’s Field Athlete of the Year, the USTFCCCA announced on March 20.

Garretson becomes the fourth Zip to collect All-Regional honors since 2007 joining Olympians Clayton Murphy (2016-Track) and Shawn Barber (2015-Field) and Cadeau Kelley (2008-Field). He previously captured the honor during the 2023 outdoor campaign.

 

GARRETSON EARNS FIRST-TEAM ALL-AMERICA ACCOLADES:

Hunter Garretson captured First-Team All-America accolades on the strength of a third-place performance at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on March 14 in Virginia Beach, Va.

A five-time All-America honoree, Garretson captured First-Team laurels for the third time in his decorated career eclipsing 18-6.75 (5.66m).

After passing at the opening height of 17-7 (5.36m), Garretson cleared the next two bars of 17-11 (5.46m) and 18-3 (5.56m) on his initial runs at the heights.

He needed two attempts to clear 18-4.75 (5.61m) before besting the bar at 18-6.75 (5.66m) on his final attempt.

After missing his initial attempt at 18-8.34 (5.71m), Garretson passed his next two jumps. He was unable to clear the bar at 18-10.75 (5.76m) on each of his attempts and finished with a third-place effort.

 

GARRETSON NAMED ELITE 90 WINNER: Hunter Garretson was the recipient of the Elite 90 award for the 2025 NCAA Division Men’s Track and Field Indoor Championship.

Garretson, who is majoring in mathematics, boasts a perfect 4.0 GPA, was presented with the award during a presentation on March 14.

Winning the honor for the third consecutive season, Garretson became the first three-time recipient of the award in Division I track and field and ninth overall three-time honoree across all sports in Division I.

The honor was the fourth time a Zip has garnered the distinguished honor joining Tyler Sanda, who won the award as a member of the Akron men’s soccer team in 2015.

 

AKRON GARNERS TRIO OF MAC INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD SPECIALTY AWARDS:

Hunter Garretson and Bismack Kipchirchir were honored by the Mid-American Conference as its 2025 Indoor Track and Field Men’s Most Outstanding Track and Field Performers of the Year, the league unveiled on March 7.

Additionally, Akron assistant coach Randy Overby was tabbed by his peers as the Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year.

Garretson earned his fifth consecutive MAC indoor pole title and eighth overall league championship besting the field at the MAC Indoor Track and Field Championships on March 1 with a mark of 17-9 (5.41m). His five indoor conference pole vault titles and eight overall combined (indoor/outdoor) pole vault championships are the most in league history.

Kipchirchir turned in a stellar effort at the MAC Championships garnering Most Valuable Performer and Freshman of the Year accolades with runner-up finishes in the men’s mile, 3,000 and 5,000 meters.

He opened his championship run crossing the line second in the men’s 5,000 meters in a career-best time of 14:29.74, the fifth-fastest time in indoor program history. In final-day competition, Kipchirchir placed second in the men’s mile in a time of 4:12.45 before capturing Second-Team All-MAC honors in the men’s 3,000 meters in a time of 8:11.78.

The Akron’s men’s team under Overby’s tutelage dominated the sprints and hurdles at the MAC Indoor Track and Field Championships (Feb. 28-March 1) scoring 54 points en route to securing its ninth overall indoor league title and first since 2020.

The team produced three All-MAC performances, with redshirt senior Jimmy Harkelroad (Huron, Ohio) earning First-Team honors in the 400M and 4×400 relay alongside sophomore Braylyn Farrington (Alabaster, Ala.), AJ Jordan and sophomore Andrew Styles (Freeport, Bahamas), while also receiving Second-Team recognition in the 200M.

The 4x400M relay squad, consisting of Farrington, Harkelroad, Jordan, and Styles, claimed victory, as did Harkelroad in the 400M. Additionally, Jordan secured third-place finishes in the 60M and 200M, while junior Tysean Baronette (Middletown, Del.) (4th – 200M), Rennie Gittens, Jr. (4th – 60M), Farrington (4th – 400M), and Styles (5th – 400M) delivered strong performances. Under expert coaching, the team has recorded the MAC’s top times this season in the 400M and 4×400 relay, along with the second-best marks in the 60M and 200M.

 

AKRON CROSS COUNTRY EARNS USTFCCCA ALL-ACADEMIC ACCOLADES: The Akron cross country team under the leadership of Zips’ director of track and field/cross country Kendra Reimer-Gonzales and cross country head coach Evans Kiptoo garnered recognition for the squad’s efforts in the classroom as the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) tabbed Akron a Division I All-Academic team for the 2024 campaign.

The Akron men’s squad was honored for recording a 3.335 GPA, while the women’s team garnered recognition for its work in the classroom for the 11th straight year with a 3.356 cumulative GPA.

Overall, 209 women’s teams and 183 men’s teams earned All-Academic team honors. 

 

CRACKING THE ALL-TIME TOP FIVE PERFORMANCES: The Zips added 28 overall top five performances and five school records in program history to the record book during the 2025 outdoor campaign.

 

 
CRACKING THE ALL-TIME TOP FIVE PERFORMANCES: The Zips added 28 overall top five performances and five school records in program history to the record book during the 2025 indoor campaign.
 

 
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Jun. 10—Around this time last year, Darren Gauson’s schedule was simple: only Habtom Samuel was competing for New Mexico at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, so UNM’s head track and field coach had plenty of time to kill between races.

“We were just going for lunches and coffees,” he said last week, “just waiting for him to compete.”

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That’s not quite the case this year.

Eleven Lobos will compete across eight events at the NCAA Championships, running Wednesday through Saturday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Led by second-year head coach Gauson, this year’s group of qualifiers is the second-largest in program history; UNM’s all-time best was 28 in 2011.

Four storylines to follow around the program this week:

Samuel or Kipkurui?

If he was UNM’s only competitor last year, Habtom Samuel more than made his mark. The Keren, Eritrea native recovered from a late fall to win the men’s 10,000-meter final in 28 minutes and 7.82 seconds.

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Samuel may be considered the frontrunner in Wednesday’s 10k final, but this year, he’ll have some stiff competition courtesy of a teammate.

UNM’s Ishmael Kipkurui beat him by a hundredth of a second in the 10k semifinals at the NCAA West First Round on May 28, the latest chapter in a back-and-forth rivalry that’s pushed both to new heights.

While both are qualified in the 5k and 10k, the question remains: will Samuel go back-to-back in Wednesday’s 10k final?

Or will Kipkurui play spoiler and come up with an individual title of his own?

“(It’s) probably 50/50 between him and Ishmael, to be totally honest,” Gauson said.

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Freshman phenom

Similar to Samuel last season, Pamela Kosgei made waves in her first year with the program. Now qualified for the women’s 5k and 10k, the freshman from Elgeyo-Marakwet County, Kenya is a frontrunner in both races and could claim UNM’s first women’s individual title since 2019.

“She’ll be really, really hard to beat … I would think she’s the favorite. She’s got all the tools, the speed, the endurance to win the title Thursday (in the 10k),” Gauson said. “And if she wins that, then it’s kind of low pressure going into the 5k finals (on Saturday) — she’ll have a really good chance to win both.”

UNM’s Marion Jepnetich — also a freshman — is also qualified to run in the 5k final.

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An appearance years in the making

After four years at Bradley — Gauson’s old school — Sophia McDonnell transferred to UNM ahead of last season, reuniting with her old coach. Now in her sixth year, she’s qualified for her first NCAA Championships and will run in the 3,000 steeplechase semifinals Thursday.

“That one really is a special one for me,” Gauson said. “We spent four years at Bradley together and now two here. Really couldn’t be happier to see Soph make it to nationals.”

Record breakers

A few Lobos who broke program records this season will get another shot to lower those times this weekend: — Lou-Anne Pouzancre Hoyer, Rebecca Grieve, Hanna Kiess and Sofia Pineda represent UNM’s first ever 4×400 entry in the outdoor championships after the group set a new program record at the NCAA West First Round, running a 3:31.72. The previous program record was 3:38.85.

The 4×400 semifinals are scheduled for Thursday. — Judy Rono also set a new 1,500 program record at the NCAA West First Round, running a 4:09.72 to better the previous Lobo best of 4:10.32. She will race in the 1,500 semifinals Thursday. — Matthew Kosgei’s season-best 8:22.13 in the 3,000 steeplechase broke a 48-year-old record (8:33.34). He will have a chance to better that time during Wednesday’s semifinals.

The long and winding road of the 2025 Florida Gators’ track and field season is finally reaching its end, once again within the familiar confines of the iconic Hayward Field.

Head coach Mike Holloway’s team is bringing three times as many entries to this week’s NCAA Outdoor Championships as it had for the meet’s indoor counterpart in March. It’s a sign of a team that has continued to fight through injuries and disappointment to remain a contender on the national stage at the most important meet of the year.

The men’s squad, the defending three-time team champions, is bringing eight entries to Eugene, Oregon. It will be tough for the Gators to overtake powerhouse squads such as USC, Texas A&M, Arkansas and Georgia. However, if they do, they’ll become the first school to win four straight titles since the 1992-99 Arkansas men’s teams that won eight straight titles. That being said, Florida managed to win last year with only 41 points, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility if things break its way.

The 10-entry strong women’s team enters the meet on a streak of three consecutive top-two finishes and will be looking to replicate their 2022 title at the same venue. Junior Hilda Olemomoi was forced to scratch the 10,000 meter final, an event she was runner-up in last season, after picking up an injury at East Regionals.

Here’s how all 18 of Florida’s entries stack up against the rest of the NCAA:

Jenoah McKiver, men’s 400 meters

After a frustrating showing at SEC Outdoors where he failed to make the final, McKiver had an impressive rebound performance at East Regionals. The redshirt senior ran back-to-back season’s bests of 45.34 and 45.29 seconds to earn his first berth to an outdoor national championship meet in an individual event.

McKiver is undeniably one of the nation’s top quarter-milers when he’s at his best. His combination of speed and strength was on full display indoors, where his 45.19-second run on Feb. 1 held up as the fourth-fastest time in the NCAA, despite that being his only performance. Now months removed from the back injury that cut his indoor season short, McKiver will be a difference maker for the Gators in their efforts of earning a team title.

Demaris Waters, men’s 110-meter hurdles

Outdoors nationals is a stage that Waters is familiar with, as the junior finished 11th at outdoor nationals last year while at San Jose State. He staked an early claim this season as one of the nation’s best hurdlers with a 13.21-second race at Florida Relays, the NCAA lead at the time.

In the two months since, only five men have bettered Waters’ time under legal conditions. However, Waters hasn’t quite replicated the same form, as he finished fourth in the SEC final and was only the eighth-fastest qualifier out of the East Region. 

To make it to the top of the podium, he’d have to take down his SEC rivals, Texas junior Kendrick Smallwood and Auburn sophomore Ja’Kobe Tharp. Smallwood is the NCAA leader and SEC champion, while Tharp was the national runner-up outdoors last year before claiming gold indoors in March.

Men’s 4×100-meter relay

Florida’s quartet in the shorter of the two relays has remained consistent throughout the year, and the results have been consistent too. Freshman Jaden Wiley, sophomore Malique Smith-Band, and juniors Garrett Fox and Justin Braun have raced together on five occasions this spring, each time with a finish between 38.94 and 39.25 seconds.

East Regionals saw a shift in the order, with Fox replacing Wiley on anchor for the first time this season. The result was a 39.21-second clocking that barely punched their ticket to Eugene, finishing 11th overall. A silver lining is none of the four will participate in an individual event at this meet, which means fresh legs could propel them to a new season’s best, which is most likely a necessity to make the final.

Men’s 4×400-meter relay

The Gators have a formula for 10 points in the 4×400-meter relay. They’re used to being at the top of the NCAA as the collegiate record holders and four-time national champions in this event, and it’s a position they’ve held this season since the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational. South Florida equalled the national-leading time of 3:01.52 at East Regionals, but Florida has only scratched the surface of this race in 2025.

On Apr. 19 in Gainesville, Florida ran sophomore Rios Prude Jr., senior Ashton Scwartzman, Braun, and McKiver in his first race in nearly three months. Since then, McKiver has rounded back into form, shaving nearly a second off his split time at East Regionals, and redshirt senior Reheem Hayles, who finished seventh over 400 meters at NCAA Outdoors in 2024, has come back into the fold. Hayles split 44.87 seconds on the second leg in Jacksonville two weeks ago. If Braun slots back in for Smith-Band, who raced at East Regionals, Florida’s squad could be capable of dipping under the three-minute barrier.

Malcolm Clemons, men’s long jump

Clemons will be concluding his storied Florida career in a national championship setting he’s become accustomed to across his five seasons in Gainesville. After he was hampered by a heel injury during the indoor season, it looked as if reaching this meet may not have been in the cards. However, Clemons successfully turned the page and earned his spot in Eugene with a 7.59-meter jump at Regionals, even in the face of a lengthy weather delay.

“I was really proud of how he handled it,” Florida jumps coach Nic Petersen said. “He completely warmed up and went out to go jump right as the lightning hit. He doesn’t ever jump twice in one day… I was just proud of him for getting out there and executing.”

The men’s long jump has been defined by parity throughout this season, as the 11 best jumpers in the nation, Clemons among them, are separated by just 20 centimeters. Minnesota sophomore Charles Godfred is the national leader, having cleared eight meters on three occasions with a best mark of 8.10 meters.

Jaden Lippett, men’s triple jump

Having missed out on national qualification indoors by 21 spots, Lippett, a freshman, is headed to his first collegiate national championship in his first season. He punched his ticket with a 15.94 meter leap at East Regionals, setting a personal best by 11 centimeters on the biggest stage of his career.

“This is just a regular track meet,” Petersen said. “This is no different than making World Junior teams or going out and competing hard at New Balance [Nationals]… The runway’s the same, the sand’s the same, it’s just another track meet.”

Lippett currently sits as the 24th-best jumper in the country this year, but a first-round foul at regionals that was well beyond his personal best hints he could have a more impressive finish in store if he can deliver once more.

Jacob Lemmon, men’s discus

If Lemmon can replicate his breakthrough performance from SEC Outdoors, he’ll score invaluable points for the Gators. A two-time First-Team All-American while competing at Virginia, the senior hadn’t broken the 60-meter barrier — a distance he eclipsed five times in 2024 — in any of his first five competitions. He made a statement in Lexington with a 61.80-meter toss, the best he’s had in collegiate competition.

His mark of 58.05 meters in East Regionals wasn’t as impressive, but it came on a clutch third-round effort while on the brink of elimination. The top two spots on the podium seem to be locked up with the two best throwers in collegiate history, Cal junior Mykolas Alekna and Oklahoma junior Ralford Mullings, but the battle for bronze will be coveted. 

Leikel Cabrera Gay, men’s javelin

Another newcomer to the Gators this spring, Cabrera Gay has made an immediate impact on both the school record books and Florida’s national title chances. The sophomore from Cuba threw beyond his 2024 personal best in four of six meets this season, and his best mark of 77.84 meters ranks fifth in program history. 

“His level has really risen,” Florida throws coach Eric Werskey said. “He rises to the occasion and the guy loves to compete. We’re going into the national meet, and I know that he’s feeling really good and he seeds well. We’re in a position where the pressure isn’t on him so he can just do his thing.”

Cabrera Gay is the No. 8 thrower in the country this year, but there’s a logjam of competitors surrounding him. Only 107 centimeters separate Cabrera Gay and Nebraska senior Arthur Petersen in fifth. 

Anthaya Charlton, women’s 100 meters

Charlton’s emergence as one of the fastest women in the NCAA has been a key storyline for the Florida women this year, as the newly minted school record holder has a legitimate shot at scoring the Gators’ first points in this event since 2014. This isn’t the Bahamian junior’s first appearance at nationals over 100 meters, but this season has unfolded differently from 2023.

Along with her exploits on the long jump runway, Charlton picked up a bronze medal at SEC outdoors on the straightaway. She followed that up with runs of 11.05 and 11.01 seconds at East Regionals, cementing herself as a true contender. 

Charlton is tied as the sixth-fastest athlete in the nation this year, but sits only a tenth back of LSU sophomore Tima Godbless, the national leader.

Gabby Matthews, women’s 200 meters

In her time at Ole Miss, Matthews was primarily a hurdler, typically only removing the barriers to serve as a leg on the Rebels’ impressive relay teams. Last year, she earned First-Team All-American honors in the 400-meter hurdles at nationals and helped her teammates to a national 4×100-meter relay title. 

With her transfer to UF, the Jamaican junior has found a talent in the flat races. She’s improved in each of her 200 meter races during the spring, capping it off with a personal best of 22.87 seconds to secure her spot at nationals. 

The half-lap is one of the deepest races, which means Matthews will most likely need to once again run faster than she ever has to advance to the final, but her promising trajectory means that can’t be ruled out.

Habiba Harris, women’s 100-meter hurdles

Only a freshman, Harris has proven to be both the best and the most consistent hurdler in the nation this outdoor season. The Santa Cruz, Jamaica, native has traversed the barriers in 12.80 seconds or less on five occasions this season under all conditions. The rest of the NCAA has combined for four such races.

If Harris is able to successfully translate the form she’s shown for the past two months to the straightaway inside Hayward, she’ll replicate the national title that Florida hurdler Grace Stark earned on the same track last June. 

Her strongest challenger is Oregon junior Aaliyah McCormick. In 2025, McCormick finished runner-up in the 60-meter hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Additionally, she logged a 12.74-second win at West Regionals, which is a time only Harris has bettered this season.

Women’s 4×100-meter relay

Sophomore Quincy Penn, Charlton, Matthews and Harris have blossomed into one of the fastest relay squads in program history, a welcome surprise after a few years where the Gators were somewhat lacking in the short sprints. The quartet raced together for the first time at SECs and immediately made a statement, picking up a sixth-place finish out of the “slow” heat.

At East Regionals, they took another step forward, finishing fifth overall in 43.17 seconds. The run now ranks sixth in program history and has them positioned 13th in the nation. This is the first year since 2017 that Florida has qualified a women’s squad to nationals in this event, and if they have one more big improvement left in the tank, a scoring finish is certainly on the table.

Anthaya Charlton and Alyssa Banales, women’s long jump

For as good of a sprinter as Charlton has been this spring, she’s an even better jumper. She carried over an excellent indoor campaign to an outdoor season that saw her claim the SEC title and sit at No. 2 on the national list. While her season has set her up for success in Eugene, her success on the track has introduced a new wrinkle. The long jump final on Thursday night is after the semifinals of the 4×100-meter relay and just 15 minutes after Charlton will race in the 100-meter semis.

“We’ve trained for this all year long,” Petersen said. “We’ve kind of put her through different situations in training where we know she’s capable of handling this kind of load and we know she’s in shape and we know she’s fit enough to do all this stuff. So from that standpoint, it’s just making sure that she understands how to go out there and execute.”

Charlton’s chief competition is Baylor senior Alexis Brown. The indoor national champion from three months ago has taken her performances to another level this outdoor season, jumping 21 centimeters farther than second-ranked Charlton. She owns the four best performances in the nation this season and has jumped farther than 6.89 meters at each of her five competitions.

Banales, like Lippett, brought out the best mark of her career when it mattered most at East Regionals. The freshman went out to a distance of 6.41 meters on her second attempt, bettering her previous personal best by a centimeter. She finished fifth, but given the impressive depth of the West Region, where she would have finished 11th, it’s likely that she’ll once again need to be better than her best to factor into the Gators’ team title pursuit.

Asia Phillips, women’s triple jump

Phillips punched her ticket to another national championship by finishing third at East Regionals with a mark of 13.29 meters. The freshman from Ontario finished 10th at NCAA Indoors, but has improved her consistency since turning the calendar to outdoors. She’s jumped 13.22 meters or better in four of her five outings this spring.

“I think as a unit, that freshman group has really kind of just stepped up,” Petersen said. “They’ve decided, ‘It doesn’t matter that I’m a freshman. I’m capable of this, I’m going to go out and do what we know how to do and what we’re training to do.”

The triple jump is also an event where the west proved to be much tougher than the east, so it is far from a certainty that Phillips will be able to replicate her regional placement at nationals. However, if she ends up in the range of her 13.55-meter personal best from nearly two years ago, a First-Team All-American finish can certainly be on the horizon.

Gracelyn Leiseth and Alida van Daalen, women’s shot put

Leiseth rebounded from an indoor season that didn’t go exactly according to plan with an excellent outdoor campaign, throwing over 17 meters each of her last five competitions and securing impressive finishes of fifth and first at SECs and East Regionals, respectively. The sophomore’s regional win came on the strength of an 18.31-meter final throw, improving her personal best by nearly 60 centimeters.

“I loved to see Gracelyn hit that type of throw,” Werskey said. “She’s worked very hard to put herself in that type of position and she’s worked really hard to correct some technical changes from a year ago… I think heading into Eugene, she has a little bit more and it’s going to be exciting to see what she can do.”

The national favorite is Colorado State senior Mya Lesnar, the only woman to surpass 19 meters outdoors, but sixth-ranked Leiseth is in a good position to score significant points for the Gators, especially if she delivers on Werskey’s expectations of “a little bit more.”

Van Daalen’s season in the shot put hasn’t been the smoothest as she’s still working back from a shoulder injury that prevented her from competing indoors, but she’s a proven championship competitor. The Dutch junior’s 17.51-meter throw at SECs should serve as a warning to her competitors that she can deliver when the moment calls for it.

“At SECs, she was seeded 13th and ended up getting sixth,” Werskey said. “She rises to the occasion in those moments despite how difficult it may be.”

Alida van Daalen, women’s discus

While van Daalen hasn’t yet matched prior years’ form in the shot put, she has not missed a step in the discus, where she sits as the sixth-best collegiate thrower in history. Van Daalen has thrown 65 meters or better, something only eight collegians have ever done, on three occasions this spring. 

Her resume includes a 65.24 meter throw to win the SEC title by just under eight meters, but her most important performance might have paradoxically been her worst of the season. After fouling her first two attempts at East Regionals, she came through with a 59.78-meter throw in round three, good enough for second and a ticket to Eugene.

“Her and I talked at length about these things and she even said, ‘I needed this, this was a bit of a wakeup call,” Werskey said. “I think last year with the 65-meter throw [at East Regionals], we walked in with the pressure and the bullseye on her. I think that just tightened her up a little bit, now it’s like a different energy going into the meet.”

The battle between van Daalen and Louisville senior Jayden Ulrich, the second-best thrower in NCAA history, for the NCAA crown will be legendary. In seven head-to-head meetings, van Daalen holds a 5-2 edge over Ulrich, but the Cardinal’s two wins came at NCAA Outdoors last year and this year’s East Regionals. On the line for van Daalen in their eighth matchup is the first discus national title, men’s or women’s, in program history, as well as a lucrative 10 team points. 

The 2025 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be held from June 11 to 14 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

Contact Paul Hof-Mahoney at phof-mahoney@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @phofmahoney

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Paul Hof-Mahoney

Paul is a junior sports journalism major who is covering the track and field beat in his first semester with the Alligator. In his free time, he enjoys watching commentary Youtube channels and consuming every medium of track and field content imaginable.