Teams & Depth

A trio of programs enters with big team numbers:

Doane (Neb.): 20 individual entries across sprints, verticals, and throws, plus a top‑seeded 4x400m unit that historically peaks at nationals.
Central Methodist (Mo.): 18 individual entries featuring pentathlon leader Haley Bellamy (3,732) and scoring potential in long jump, hurdles, and quarter‑mile. 
Indiana Tech: 15 individual entries and three relays (4x400m, 4x800m, DMR), reinforcing the Warriors’ sprint/relay pedigree. 

In 2025, Cumberlands (Ky.) won the women’s team title (58 pts), with Doane (Neb.) second (48), Madonna (Mich.) third (45), and Life (Ga.) fourth (44), underscoring how crucial spread scoring and relays were—and will be again—this March.

Event‑By‑Event Storylines

Sprints & Hurdles

60m / 200m: Doane’s sprint corps is loaded (e.g., Tania Gleason at 24.04 in the 200), while contenders like Promise Amasiatu of Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) and Kiara Green of Brewton‑Parker (Ga.) bolster a fast 60/200 double. Blessing Ogundiran of Warner (Fla.) tops the 60m list with a time of 7.20. While Nikiwe Mongwe of MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) tops the list in the 200 qualifying with a time of 23.95.  In 2025, Madonna’s Ny’tierra Hobbs won the 60m (7.30) and Life’s Briana Campbell captured the 60H in 8.09—benchmarks this year’s qualifiers will be chasing. 

400m: Kat Vogt of Doane (Neb.) headlines the one‑lap entrants at 54.02, with Charity Jones of Madonna (Mich.), Nikiwe Mongwe of MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) and Shevaughn Thomas of Life (Ga.) among the top threats. Last year, Praise Idamadudu of Cumberland (Tenn.) won the 400 in 53.91, with Jones taking silver—proof the final can turn on the last exchange. 

Middle Distance & Distance

800m: Emeline Delaville of Life (Ga.) returns as the athlete to beat with a 2:06.29 season best; she won the 2025 title (2:13.30) and owns championship savvy in tactical finals. 

Mile/3,000m/5,000m: Katie Woods of Marian (Ind.) enters as the top miler (4:42.70), while Ellen‑Mary Kearney of Milligan (Tenn.) is the reigning 3,000m champion (9:38.57) after qualifying with a time of 9:23.37. The distance fields are stacked with programs like Milligan (Tenn.), The Master’s (Calif.), Oklahoma City and Taylor (Ind.)—Taylor’s Jaynie Halterman won the 2025 5,000m in a commanding 16:00.14. 

Jumps

High Jump: Adarra Hagelund of Dickinson State (N.D.) cleared 1.76m as the top qualifier in the event; Emma Valentine of Siena Heights (Mich.) is the defending NAIA champion at 1.80m and returns to the pit in 2026.

Horizontal Jumps: Jadyn Vermillion of Montana Tech leads the long jump entries over six meters, while Faith Brennan of Dickinson State (N.D.), Aneesa Sheppard of Friends (Kan.) and Rosjai Curtis of Park (Mo.) top a closely packed triple‑jump board. In 2025, William Carey’s (Miss.) Fabiana Morales won the triple jump (12.31m) and Ave Maria’s (Fla.) Caitlyn O’Brien captured the long jump (5.93m). 

Throws

Shot Put/Weight Throw: Sydney Duncan of IU Kokomo (Ind.)—the 2025 shot put champion at 17.60m—returns as the season leader (17.18m). Kori Nagel of Dickinson State (N.D.) scored big last year with 15.22m in shot put  and 18.50m in weight throw and headlines a deep Blue Hawk throws group again. 

Pentathlon

Pentathlon: Haley Bellamy of Central Methodist (Mo.) is the top 2026 seed (3,732) and placed fourth in last year’s pentathlon, which Southern Oregon’s Abi Stevens won with 3,824. 

Relays

4×400m: Life (Ga.) enters as the top seed (3:44.45) with Doane (Neb.) (3:47.35), Marian (Ind.) (3:47.35) and Indiana Tech (3:48.10) in range. In 2025, Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) won the event in 3:45.33, proving the title rarely goes to the top seed without a fight. 

4×800m: Marian (Ind.) leads 2026 entries at 9:04.94, chased by Aquinas (Mich.), Sain Xavier (Ill.) and Cornerstone (Mich.) in a loaded field. The 2025 crown went to The Master’s (Calif.) (8:56.15), while Marian finished runner‑up—fuel for Knights’ redemption hopes. 

Distance Medley Relay: Marian (Ind.) holds the top 2026 mark (11:46.32) while Indiana Wesleyan follows (11:48.24) with Olivet Nazarene (Ill.), Taylor (Ind.) and Aquinas (Mich.) close. The 2025 title belonged to The Master’s in 11:38.18, underscoring how decisive the DMR can be in Saturday scoring.

The championship will be live-streamed on the NAIA Network and the NAIA Channel of the Urban Edge Network for free. For more information on streaming go to www.naia.org/watch