NCAA announces entries to Division I and II indoor championships...

INDIANAPOLIS--The NCAA announced the list of participants who will compete in both the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and the Division II Championships in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Both national championship meets will be contested on March 13-14th.

NCAA D1 ACCEPTED ENTRIES...

After her performance at the B1G Ten championships in Indianapolis last week, freshman Veronica Vacca (Paul Merca photo) of 12th ranked Washington, who was on the bubble of making the top 16 on the national descending order list, made the field with her personal best of 14-9 (4.50m) in the women's pole vault.

Vacca will join her Husky teammate, NCAA and current world leader Hana Moll in the event. Moll currently leads the world with her best of 16-0 (4.88m) set at the UW Invitational.

In the mile, Rosemary Longisa of Washington State joins Washington's Chloe Foerster and Mia Cochran, along with former Husky Wilma Nielsen, now competing for Oregon.

Longisa is Washington State's lone competitor on both the men's and women's squad.

Both Longisa and Foerster made the top 16 in the 800 meters, but both schools elected to scratch them in the event to concentrate on one individual event.

Foerster is part of the Huskies' distance medley relay pool along with Chloe Symon, Jenica Swartz, Cochran, Julia David-Smith, and Chloe Thomas.

Thomas is entered in the 5000.

Puyallup native JaiCieonna Gero-Holt, competing for the University of Illinois, is entered in both the high jump and the pentathlon.

Carnation native Braelyn Baker, and former Husky Kapiolani Coleman are listed on the 4 x 400 relay pools for Duke, and UCLA, respectively.

On the men's side, former Washington State standout Mason Lawyer, who was one of many impacted by the school's decision to downsize the track and field program to a distance-only squad, is one of the top qualifiers in the 60 meter dash, after running 6.49 for the University of Arizona at the Big 12 Championships in Lubbock, Texas last week (adjusted to 6.51 by the NCAA for altitude).

Washington's Reuben Reina, Jr, an Arkansas native, leads the 12th ranked Dawgs, as he returns to his former school's home track, where he's potentially could run four races over the two days. Reina in the mile qualifying on Friday, plus the final of the distance medley relay to end Friday's session.

Should he advance out of Friday's qualifying, he'll run in the finals of the mile, as well as the finals of the 3000, which is scheduled towards the end of the meet.

In the mile, Thomas Diamond of the Huskies will join Reina in the qualifying round.

The Huskies qualified their distance medley relay team for the NCAA championships. Reina and Diamond are in the relay pool, along with Alex Rhodes, who most certainly be the 400 leg, and Thomas Bilyard. 

Washington has freshmen Josiah Tostenson and Owen Powell, along with Jamar Distel and Martin Barco on the relay pool. With Reina and Diamond entered in individual events, they could sub them out if needed up until 45 minutes before the race.

B1G Ten 10000 champion Evan Jenkins earned one of the final spots in the 5000 meter run.

Bellingham natives Andre Korbmacher of Florida State and Jacob Andrews of USC are entered. Korbmacher is in the 60 meter hurdles, while Andrews is on USC's 4 x 400 relay pool.

Also in the 4 x 400 relay pool for Georgia is Seattle Prep grad Will Floyd. Floyd is the defending 400m champ, but did not run an open 400 during the indoor season.

On the field, collegiate leader Jimmy Rhoads of the Huskies is the top seed in the men's pole vault, and Virginia's Jeremiah Nubbe of Yelm's Rainier HS is in the weight throw.

One significant change in the time schedule for the D1 championships is that they are no longer splitting the men's and women's championships into two separate daily sessions, which was the case after the COVID season.

The championships will run as one daily session, with alternating men's and women's events. That change gives athletes who are doubling more recovery time between events.

ESPN+ ($) will stream the championships live starting at noon Eastern time (9 am Pacific) Friday, March 13 and starting at 12:30 p.m. Eastern time (9:30 am Pacific) Saturday, March 14. There will be a re-air of the championships at 7 p.m. Eastern time (4 pm Pacific) on Sunday, March 15 on ESPNU.

The NCAA's release and link to accepted entries is available here.

NCAA D2 ACCEPTED ENTRIES...

The NCAA D2 championships takes place on the same days at the D1 championships at the Virginia Beach Sports Center.

Emy Ntekpere of 20th ranked Central Washington, the defending NCAA triple jump champion, returns for another shot at the title.

Ntekpere, who is also the defending NCAA outdoor champion in the high jump, is one of the top seeds in that event, as she looks to add an indoor title to her resume.

In the high jump, she'll be joined in the field by Western Washington's Kora Cook.

24th ranked Western Washington's Jessica Polkinghorn earned one of the 18 spots in the shot put.

On the track, All-American Bec Bennett (Loren Orr/GNAC photo) of Western Washington, is one of the top seeds in the 400.

Bennett is expected to anchor the Vikings' 4 x 400 relay team, which includes Casie Kliene, Jayda Darroch, and Kennedy Cook.

Emmy Kroontje rounds out Western's entries in the meet, as she'll go in the 800 meters.

Elise Hopper in the 200 meters rounds out Central Washington's entries, while GNAC 60 hurdles champ Hannah Chang of Seattle Pacific is the Falcons' lone entry.

In the men's competition, Colton Magruder and Drew Klein are Central Washington's lone entries.

Magruder, who competed Sunday at the USATF indoor championships in Staten Island, is entered in the 60 meter dash, while Klein qualified for his second career NCAA berth in the heptathlon after winning the GNAC championship with a score of 5149 points.

Former Wildcat Ramon Rodriguez, now competing for Tiffin, is in the 3000 meters.

NCAA.com will stream both days of the Division II championships.

The home page for the NCAA Division II championships is available here.

NOTE: The NCAA, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, USTFCCCA, and the sports information offices of Washington State University, University of Washington, Central Washington, Western Washington and Seattle Pacific contributed to this report.

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