Friday, January 23
Lynchburg, Va.
9:00 AM ET
Liberty University
vs
Liberty Open
Kellen Kimes heaved the weight a program-record 70-5.75 at last year's Liberty Open and will be back to defend his title Friday.
Liberty Open Slated for Friday
1/20/2026 4:49:00 PM | Track and Field
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty Open will feature a full Friday of activity at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex. More than 1,300 athletes from 38 colleges and universities are entered in the one-day event.
Things will get started at 9 a.m. with both the women's shot put and men's 5K.
How to Follow the Flames and Lady Flames
Admission is free of charge for the Liberty Open.
Live results will be available throughout the meet, courtesy of Blue Ridge Timing
Celebrating a Decade
The Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex, which opened its doors in January 2017, is celebrating its 10th season of competition in 2025-26. This season, Wavelight technology is being utilized at the facility for the first time.
The Liberty Open will mark the second of five college meets the Flames host this season, with the sixth annual Brant Tolsma Elite Invitational sponsored by Beynon (Jan. 30-31), Liberty Open (Feb. 7-8), 12th annual Darius Dixon Memorial Invitational (Feb. 13-14) and CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships (Feb. 27-28) still to come.
Next week's Brant Tolsma meet promises to be a headliner, featuring Duke, North Carolina, NC State, Northern Arizona, Virginia, Wake Forest, High Point, North Carolina A&T and Liberty and airing live on FloTrack.
Record Breakers
Numerous Liberty program records and freshman records have been eclipsed already this season. Below is a summary.
Program Records
Mahogany Mobley – Women's 300 – 38.70 on Dec. 5 and 38.67 on Jan. 16
Joshua Smith – Men's Triple Jump – 51-3.5 on Dec. 5
Allie Zealand – Women's 3K – 8:44.71 on Dec. 6
Elijah Sherard – Men's 300 – 33.60 on Jan. 16
Freshman Records
Shelby Smith – Women's 300 – 40.22 on Dec. 5 and 39.25 on Jan. 16
Chase Johnson – Men's Pole Vault – 16-11 on Jan. 9
Jacob Tarkington – Men's 800 – 1:50.76 on Jan. 9
Last year, Kellen Kimes shattered the program and freshman standards with his 70-5.75 weight throw at the Liberty Open. The mark still stands.
Fresh Faces
A trio of mid-year additions could make their Liberty debuts on Friday, including Tahj Brown (hurdler from the Bahamas), Ajani Daley (sprinter from Antigua and Barbuda) and Gilles Ouedraogo (jumper from Burkina Faso).
Brown is entered in the men's 60 hurdles, Daley in the men's 60 dash and Ouedraogo in the men's triple jump.
Conference USA Contenders
Liberty's third season as a Conference USA member will culminate with the 2026 CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships, Feb. 27-28 at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex. Through the early stages of the season, Liberty ranks No. 1 in the following events:
Women's 3K – Allie Zealand – 8:44.71
Pentathlon – Patasha Bryan – 3,950
Men's 800 – Jacob Tarkington – 1:50.76
Men's Mile – Michael Long – 4:05.46
Men's 3K – Jack Cottrell – 8:05.86
Men's Long Jump – Markus White – 24-11.25
Men's Triple Jump – Joshua Smith – 51-3.5
Men's Pole Vault – Chase Johnson – 16-11
Men's Shot Put – Trevor Veenstra – 59-1.5
Men's Weight Throw – Kellen Kimes – 65-10.25
Heptathlon – Jake Nicholson – 4,930
Among the Nation's Elite
At season's end, the nation's top 16 performers in each event will qualify to the 2026 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships. The meet is scheduled for March 13-14 in Fayetteville, Ark.
The following Flames currently rank among the top 16 in their respective events:
No. 3 – Allie Zealand – Women's 3K – 8:44.71
No. 8 – Patasha Bryan – Pentathlon – 3,950
Up Next
The aforementioned sixth annual Brant Tolsma Elite Invitational sponsored by Beynon is set for Jan. 30 and 31 and will be the Flames' first home meet ever to air on FloTrack.
Elite sections of the mile, 3K and 5K are scheduled for Jan. 30 beginning at 4:30 p.m.
Things will get started at 9 a.m. with both the women's shot put and men's 5K.
How to Follow the Flames and Lady Flames
Admission is free of charge for the Liberty Open.
Live results will be available throughout the meet, courtesy of Blue Ridge Timing
Celebrating a Decade
The Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex, which opened its doors in January 2017, is celebrating its 10th season of competition in 2025-26. This season, Wavelight technology is being utilized at the facility for the first time.
The Liberty Open will mark the second of five college meets the Flames host this season, with the sixth annual Brant Tolsma Elite Invitational sponsored by Beynon (Jan. 30-31), Liberty Open (Feb. 7-8), 12th annual Darius Dixon Memorial Invitational (Feb. 13-14) and CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships (Feb. 27-28) still to come.
Next week's Brant Tolsma meet promises to be a headliner, featuring Duke, North Carolina, NC State, Northern Arizona, Virginia, Wake Forest, High Point, North Carolina A&T and Liberty and airing live on FloTrack.
Record Breakers
Numerous Liberty program records and freshman records have been eclipsed already this season. Below is a summary.
Program Records
Mahogany Mobley – Women's 300 – 38.70 on Dec. 5 and 38.67 on Jan. 16
Joshua Smith – Men's Triple Jump – 51-3.5 on Dec. 5
Allie Zealand – Women's 3K – 8:44.71 on Dec. 6
Elijah Sherard – Men's 300 – 33.60 on Jan. 16
Freshman Records
Shelby Smith – Women's 300 – 40.22 on Dec. 5 and 39.25 on Jan. 16
Chase Johnson – Men's Pole Vault – 16-11 on Jan. 9
Jacob Tarkington – Men's 800 – 1:50.76 on Jan. 9
Last year, Kellen Kimes shattered the program and freshman standards with his 70-5.75 weight throw at the Liberty Open. The mark still stands.
Fresh Faces
A trio of mid-year additions could make their Liberty debuts on Friday, including Tahj Brown (hurdler from the Bahamas), Ajani Daley (sprinter from Antigua and Barbuda) and Gilles Ouedraogo (jumper from Burkina Faso).
Brown is entered in the men's 60 hurdles, Daley in the men's 60 dash and Ouedraogo in the men's triple jump.
Conference USA Contenders
Liberty's third season as a Conference USA member will culminate with the 2026 CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships, Feb. 27-28 at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex. Through the early stages of the season, Liberty ranks No. 1 in the following events:
Women's 3K – Allie Zealand – 8:44.71
Pentathlon – Patasha Bryan – 3,950
Men's 800 – Jacob Tarkington – 1:50.76
Men's Mile – Michael Long – 4:05.46
Men's 3K – Jack Cottrell – 8:05.86
Men's Long Jump – Markus White – 24-11.25
Men's Triple Jump – Joshua Smith – 51-3.5
Men's Pole Vault – Chase Johnson – 16-11
Men's Shot Put – Trevor Veenstra – 59-1.5
Men's Weight Throw – Kellen Kimes – 65-10.25
Heptathlon – Jake Nicholson – 4,930
Among the Nation's Elite
At season's end, the nation's top 16 performers in each event will qualify to the 2026 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships. The meet is scheduled for March 13-14 in Fayetteville, Ark.
The following Flames currently rank among the top 16 in their respective events:
No. 3 – Allie Zealand – Women's 3K – 8:44.71
No. 8 – Patasha Bryan – Pentathlon – 3,950
Up Next
The aforementioned sixth annual Brant Tolsma Elite Invitational sponsored by Beynon is set for Jan. 30 and 31 and will be the Flames' first home meet ever to air on FloTrack.
Elite sections of the mile, 3K and 5K are scheduled for Jan. 30 beginning at 4:30 p.m.
Players Mentioned
Hurdles
/ Track and Field
Heptathlon
/ Track and Field
Distance
/ Track and FieldSprints
/ Track and Field
Pole Vault
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Mid-Distance
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Decathlon
/ Track and FieldJumps
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Sprints
/ Track and Field
Mid-Distance
/ Track and Field
Throws
/ Track and Field
Jumps
/ Track and Field
Mid-Distance
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