Saturday, February 28
Lynchburg, Va.
10:30 AM ET
Liberty University
vs
Conference USA Indoor Track Championships
Liberty Men’s Track & Field Returns to Top of CUSA, Lady Flames Take 2nd
2/28/2026 10:30:00 PM | Track and Field
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty men's squad reclaimed its spot atop CUSA while the Lady Flames finished second at the 2026 CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships, which wrapped up Saturday at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex.
One year after Kennesaw State halted Liberty's 27-year winning streak in indoor track & field conference championships, the Flames returned the favor with a 37-point win (196-159) over the Owls.
Liberty won four men's events on Saturday, headlined by Gilles Ouedraogo's program-record 53-1 triple jump which puts him in contention for a trip to the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Meanwhile, the Lady Flames finished 14 points (140.5-126.5) behind Kennesaw State in the women's team battle, ending Liberty's string of four straight indoor crowns (two ASUN, two CUSA).
All-American Allie Zealand notched two of the Lady Flames' three event victories on Saturday (women's mile and 3K) on her way to earning Women's High Point Scorer of the Meet recognition. Add in her anchor leg from the Lady Flames' victorious distance medley relay squad from Friday evening and Zealand totaled 22.5 points, the most of any athlete in the meet, male or female.
All in all, Liberty posted 11 total first-place finishes and set a pair of program records during the meet, also including a 3:37.45 clocking by the women's 4 x 400 quartet of Shelby Smith, Patasha Bryan, Maddy Merritt and Mahogany Mobley.
The CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships brought an impressive conclusion to the Flames' 10th season of competition at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex.
Men's Day 2 Recap
After bringing a 28-point lead into Saturday's slate of events, Liberty quickly squelched Kennesaw State's hopes of making a comeback with outstanding showings in the first two disciplines to conclude (men's triple jump and heptathlon).
Ouedraogo (53-1), Joshua Smith (52-2) and Friday's long jump champion Markus White (50-11.5) all produced big personal-best marks to sweep the men's triple jump's three spots on the podium and now all rank among the top four indoor men's triple jumpers in program history.
Ouedraogo set the Liberty triple jump record for the fourth straight meet to begin his time as a Flame, eclipsing his mark of 52-7.25 from the Tiger Paw Invitational two weeks ago. His 53-1 distance puts the Burkina Faso squarely on the bubble for NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships qualification. It also represents the longest triple jump at this meet since 2019.
The Flames then racked up 28 team points in the heptathlon for their highest-scoring event of the meet. Gabriel Willis (5,273 points) successfully defended his title from 2025, earning Liberty's seventh heptathlon conference crown in the last eight years. Jake Nicholson (second, personal-best 5,084 points), Samuel O'Regan (fourth, 4,719) and Patrick Adams III (fifth, 4,487 in his heptathlon debut) joined Willis inside the top five.
Just as he had done at the 2025 CUSA outdoor meet, Christian Hicks recorded a big personal best to win the men's shot put title. His 59-3 effort won the competition by two and a half feet and made him the ninth 18-meter indoor shot putter in program history. Teammate Trevor Veenstra joined Hicks on the podium in third (55-7.5).
Tahj Brown dominated the men's 60 hurdles final with a winning time of 7.70 that shattered his own Liberty freshman standard of 7.85 from Friday's prelims and ranks No. 2 all-time for the Flames. He was the only freshman to win an individual event during the men's portion of the meet and claimed Liberty's first CUSA men's 60 hurdles title.
Simon Lamparelli (400, personal-best 46.99) and Michael Long (mile, 4:08.15) each collected runner-up finishes on the track, with Lamparelli becoming the third Flame ever to crack the 47.00 barrier indoors.
Edwin Kiprop nabbed the Flames' final All-CUSA performance of the meet with a third-place showing in the men's 3K (8:37.70).
Women's Day 2 Recap
A year after being named Women's Freshman of the Meet, Zealand became the Lady Flames' first Women's High Point Scorer of the Meet since joining CUSA. She won both the mile (4:37.83) and 3K (9:35.37) with impressive finishing kicks, becoming the first Lady Flame to win those two events at the same conference meet since 2016 (Ednah Kurgat – Big South).
Zealand successfully defended her mile title by eight seconds, dropping a 62-second final 400 to pull away from the field and scare the meet record of 4:37.53. Jessica Palisca (third, 4:46.23) and Katrina Schlenker (fourth, 4:48.07) made the afternoon's first running event final a 21-point showing for the host Lady Flames.
About two hours later, Zealand and Friday's 5K champion (Middle Tennessee's Faith Nyathi) met in the middle for the 3K final. Zealand needed a 30.94-second last 200 to hold off Nyathi for the victory. Katie Sigerud (fifth, 9:41.53) and Ava Gordon (sixth, 9:42.99) added points in a late attempt to catch Kennesaw State in the team standings.
As Hicks had done in the men's competition, Bethany Tate was able to win the indoor women's shot put on Saturday after claiming an outdoor crown in the event last May in Murfreesboro. Tate matched her lifetime best of 50-5.5 in round six and then watched as the final attempt of New Mexico State's Alesha Lane landed just shy of that at 50-4.
Even though Kennesaw State had clinched the women's team title prior to the 4 x 400 relay, the Owls and Lady Flames still waged an incredible battle. Both teams eclipsed the previous facility record of 3:37.63, with Kennesaw State holding off Liberty, 3:37.37 to 3:37.45.
The Lady Flames shattered the program record of 3:39.06 set at the 2019 ECAC Championship by Cortney Strohman, Ty'Asia Dansbury, Delaney McDowell and Tanner Ealum. That same quartet went on to qualify for the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships a couple months later.
Liberty's record-breaking splits included 55.57 for Smith, 54.65 for pentathlon champion Bryan, 53.39 for Merritt and 53.95 for Mobley. Merritt's 53.39 split is the fastest indoor clocking on record for the Lady Flames, bettering Ealum's 53.52 anchor from the 2019 ECAC meet.
Mobley had warmed up for the relay by racing to a personal-best 23.93 for third place in the 200 final and No. 2 in program history.
Eden Alexander came in fourth in the women's 800 final in 2:07.70, taking down the Liberty freshman record of 2:09.61 set by teammate Palisca in 2023.
Alivia Rivera-Norman, who had posted a Liberty freshman standard of her own on Friday (8.42), posted an 8.43 for third place in the women's 60 hurdles final.
Final Men's Team Scores
1) Liberty – 196
2) Kennesaw State – 159
3) Middle Tennessee – 101.5
4) Sam Houston – 68
5) Western Kentucky – 60.5
6) Louisiana Tech – 44
7) UTEP – 30
Final Women's Team Scores
1) Kennesaw State – 140.5
2) Liberty – 126.5
3) FIU – 81.6
4) Middle Tennessee – 57
5) UTEP – 45.6
6) Louisiana Tech – 39.6
7) Western Kentucky – 33
8) New Mexico State – 31.6
9) Sam Houston – 29
10) Missouri State – 27.6
11) Delaware – 27
12) Jacksonville State – 21
Men's High Point Scorer of the Meet
Moses Lekokei, Middle Tennessee
Women's High Point Scorer of the Meet
Allie Zealand, Liberty
Men's Freshman of the Meet
Marion Clark, Kennesaw State
Women's Freshman of the Meet
Kylie Neira, FIU and Tickia Sutton, Kennesaw State
Men's Day 2 CUSA Champions
Tahj Brown – 60 Hurdles – 7.70
Christian Hicks – Shot Put – 59-3
Gilles Ouedraogo – Triple Jump – 53-1
Gabriel Willis – Heptathlon – 5,273
Women's Day 2 CUSA Champions
Bethany Tate – Shot Put – 50-5.5
Allie Zealand – Mile – 4:37.83
Allie Zealand – 3K – 9:35.37
Other Men's Day 2 Top 3 Finishers
2nd – Simon Lamparelli – 400 – 46.99
2nd – Michael Long – Mile – 4:08.15
2nd – Joshua Smith – Triple Jump – 52-2
2nd – Jake Nicholson – Heptathlon – 5,084
3rd – Edwin Kiprop – 3K – 8:37.70
3rd – Markus White – Triple Jump – 50-11.5
3rd – Trevor Veenstra – Shot Put – 55-7.5
Other Women's Day 2 Top 3 Finishers
2nd – Shelby Smith, Patasha Bryan, Maddy Merritt, Mahogany Mobley – 4 x 400 – 3:37.45
3rd – Mahogany Mobley – 200 – 23.93
3rd – Jessica Palisca – Mile – 4:46.23
3rd – Alivia Rivera-Norman – 60 Hurdles – 8.43
Men's Day 2 Record Breakers
Program Record – Gilles Ouedraogo – Triple Jump – 53-1
Previous Record: 52-7.25 by Ouedraogo at the Tiger Paw Invitational on Feb. 14
Liberty Freshman Record – Tahj Brown – 60 Hurdles – 7.70
Previous Record: 7.85 by Brown during Friday's prelims
Women's Day 2 Record Breakers
Program Record – Smith, Bryan, Merritt, Mobley – 4 x 400 – 3:37.45
Previous Record: 3:39.06 by Cortney Strohman, Ty'Asia Dansbury, Delaney McDowell and Tanner Ealum at the ECAC Championship on March 3, 2019
Liberty Freshman Record – Eden Alexander – 800 – 2:07.70
Previous Record: 2:09.61 by Jessica Palisca on Feb. 4, 2023
Day 2 Updates to Liberty's All-Time Men's Top 10 List
No. 1 – Triple Jump – Gilles Ouedraogo – 53-1
No. 2 – 60 Hurdles – Tahj Brown – 7.70
No. 2 – Triple Jump – Joshua Smith – 52-2
No. 3 – 400 – Simon Lamparelli – 46.99
No. 3 – 800 – Brendan Pitcher – 1:50.74
No. 4 – Triple Jump – Markus White – 50-11.5
No. 8 – Shot Put – Christian Hicks – 59-3
No. 8 – 4 x 400 – Lamparelli, Pitcher, Nicholson, Long – 3:13.61
Day 2 Updates to Liberty's All-Time Women's Top 10 List
No. 1 – 4 x 400 – Smith, Bryan, Merritt, Mobley – 3:37.45
No. 2 – 200 – Mahogany Mobley – 23.93
No. 6 – Mile – Jessica Palisca – 4:46.23
No. 8 – 800 – Eden Alexander – 2:07.70
No. 8 – High Jump – Eva Whiteman – 5-7.25
Up Next
The 2026 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships will take place March 13-14 at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark. The full field of participants will be announced Tuesday evening on NCAA.com, with Gilles Ouedraogo (men's triple jump) and Allie Zealand (women's mile and 3K) in contention for national berths.
Most of Liberty's athletes will now turn their attention to the outdoor track & field season. The Flames' first outdoor meet will be the Bob Davidson Team Challenge, March 20-21 in High Point, N.C.
One year after Kennesaw State halted Liberty's 27-year winning streak in indoor track & field conference championships, the Flames returned the favor with a 37-point win (196-159) over the Owls.
Liberty won four men's events on Saturday, headlined by Gilles Ouedraogo's program-record 53-1 triple jump which puts him in contention for a trip to the NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships.
Meanwhile, the Lady Flames finished 14 points (140.5-126.5) behind Kennesaw State in the women's team battle, ending Liberty's string of four straight indoor crowns (two ASUN, two CUSA).
All-American Allie Zealand notched two of the Lady Flames' three event victories on Saturday (women's mile and 3K) on her way to earning Women's High Point Scorer of the Meet recognition. Add in her anchor leg from the Lady Flames' victorious distance medley relay squad from Friday evening and Zealand totaled 22.5 points, the most of any athlete in the meet, male or female.
All in all, Liberty posted 11 total first-place finishes and set a pair of program records during the meet, also including a 3:37.45 clocking by the women's 4 x 400 quartet of Shelby Smith, Patasha Bryan, Maddy Merritt and Mahogany Mobley.
The CUSA Indoor Track & Field Championships brought an impressive conclusion to the Flames' 10th season of competition at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex.
Men's Day 2 Recap
After bringing a 28-point lead into Saturday's slate of events, Liberty quickly squelched Kennesaw State's hopes of making a comeback with outstanding showings in the first two disciplines to conclude (men's triple jump and heptathlon).
Ouedraogo (53-1), Joshua Smith (52-2) and Friday's long jump champion Markus White (50-11.5) all produced big personal-best marks to sweep the men's triple jump's three spots on the podium and now all rank among the top four indoor men's triple jumpers in program history.
Ouedraogo set the Liberty triple jump record for the fourth straight meet to begin his time as a Flame, eclipsing his mark of 52-7.25 from the Tiger Paw Invitational two weeks ago. His 53-1 distance puts the Burkina Faso squarely on the bubble for NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships qualification. It also represents the longest triple jump at this meet since 2019.
The Flames then racked up 28 team points in the heptathlon for their highest-scoring event of the meet. Gabriel Willis (5,273 points) successfully defended his title from 2025, earning Liberty's seventh heptathlon conference crown in the last eight years. Jake Nicholson (second, personal-best 5,084 points), Samuel O'Regan (fourth, 4,719) and Patrick Adams III (fifth, 4,487 in his heptathlon debut) joined Willis inside the top five.
Just as he had done at the 2025 CUSA outdoor meet, Christian Hicks recorded a big personal best to win the men's shot put title. His 59-3 effort won the competition by two and a half feet and made him the ninth 18-meter indoor shot putter in program history. Teammate Trevor Veenstra joined Hicks on the podium in third (55-7.5).
Tahj Brown dominated the men's 60 hurdles final with a winning time of 7.70 that shattered his own Liberty freshman standard of 7.85 from Friday's prelims and ranks No. 2 all-time for the Flames. He was the only freshman to win an individual event during the men's portion of the meet and claimed Liberty's first CUSA men's 60 hurdles title.
Simon Lamparelli (400, personal-best 46.99) and Michael Long (mile, 4:08.15) each collected runner-up finishes on the track, with Lamparelli becoming the third Flame ever to crack the 47.00 barrier indoors.
Edwin Kiprop nabbed the Flames' final All-CUSA performance of the meet with a third-place showing in the men's 3K (8:37.70).
Women's Day 2 Recap
A year after being named Women's Freshman of the Meet, Zealand became the Lady Flames' first Women's High Point Scorer of the Meet since joining CUSA. She won both the mile (4:37.83) and 3K (9:35.37) with impressive finishing kicks, becoming the first Lady Flame to win those two events at the same conference meet since 2016 (Ednah Kurgat – Big South).
Zealand successfully defended her mile title by eight seconds, dropping a 62-second final 400 to pull away from the field and scare the meet record of 4:37.53. Jessica Palisca (third, 4:46.23) and Katrina Schlenker (fourth, 4:48.07) made the afternoon's first running event final a 21-point showing for the host Lady Flames.
About two hours later, Zealand and Friday's 5K champion (Middle Tennessee's Faith Nyathi) met in the middle for the 3K final. Zealand needed a 30.94-second last 200 to hold off Nyathi for the victory. Katie Sigerud (fifth, 9:41.53) and Ava Gordon (sixth, 9:42.99) added points in a late attempt to catch Kennesaw State in the team standings.
As Hicks had done in the men's competition, Bethany Tate was able to win the indoor women's shot put on Saturday after claiming an outdoor crown in the event last May in Murfreesboro. Tate matched her lifetime best of 50-5.5 in round six and then watched as the final attempt of New Mexico State's Alesha Lane landed just shy of that at 50-4.
Even though Kennesaw State had clinched the women's team title prior to the 4 x 400 relay, the Owls and Lady Flames still waged an incredible battle. Both teams eclipsed the previous facility record of 3:37.63, with Kennesaw State holding off Liberty, 3:37.37 to 3:37.45.
The Lady Flames shattered the program record of 3:39.06 set at the 2019 ECAC Championship by Cortney Strohman, Ty'Asia Dansbury, Delaney McDowell and Tanner Ealum. That same quartet went on to qualify for the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships a couple months later.
Liberty's record-breaking splits included 55.57 for Smith, 54.65 for pentathlon champion Bryan, 53.39 for Merritt and 53.95 for Mobley. Merritt's 53.39 split is the fastest indoor clocking on record for the Lady Flames, bettering Ealum's 53.52 anchor from the 2019 ECAC meet.
Mobley had warmed up for the relay by racing to a personal-best 23.93 for third place in the 200 final and No. 2 in program history.
Eden Alexander came in fourth in the women's 800 final in 2:07.70, taking down the Liberty freshman record of 2:09.61 set by teammate Palisca in 2023.
Alivia Rivera-Norman, who had posted a Liberty freshman standard of her own on Friday (8.42), posted an 8.43 for third place in the women's 60 hurdles final.
Final Men's Team Scores
1) Liberty – 196
2) Kennesaw State – 159
3) Middle Tennessee – 101.5
4) Sam Houston – 68
5) Western Kentucky – 60.5
6) Louisiana Tech – 44
7) UTEP – 30
Final Women's Team Scores
1) Kennesaw State – 140.5
2) Liberty – 126.5
3) FIU – 81.6
4) Middle Tennessee – 57
5) UTEP – 45.6
6) Louisiana Tech – 39.6
7) Western Kentucky – 33
8) New Mexico State – 31.6
9) Sam Houston – 29
10) Missouri State – 27.6
11) Delaware – 27
12) Jacksonville State – 21
Men's High Point Scorer of the Meet
Moses Lekokei, Middle Tennessee
Women's High Point Scorer of the Meet
Allie Zealand, Liberty
Men's Freshman of the Meet
Marion Clark, Kennesaw State
Women's Freshman of the Meet
Kylie Neira, FIU and Tickia Sutton, Kennesaw State
Men's Day 2 CUSA Champions
Tahj Brown – 60 Hurdles – 7.70
Christian Hicks – Shot Put – 59-3
Gilles Ouedraogo – Triple Jump – 53-1
Gabriel Willis – Heptathlon – 5,273
Women's Day 2 CUSA Champions
Bethany Tate – Shot Put – 50-5.5
Allie Zealand – Mile – 4:37.83
Allie Zealand – 3K – 9:35.37
Other Men's Day 2 Top 3 Finishers
2nd – Simon Lamparelli – 400 – 46.99
2nd – Michael Long – Mile – 4:08.15
2nd – Joshua Smith – Triple Jump – 52-2
2nd – Jake Nicholson – Heptathlon – 5,084
3rd – Edwin Kiprop – 3K – 8:37.70
3rd – Markus White – Triple Jump – 50-11.5
3rd – Trevor Veenstra – Shot Put – 55-7.5
Other Women's Day 2 Top 3 Finishers
2nd – Shelby Smith, Patasha Bryan, Maddy Merritt, Mahogany Mobley – 4 x 400 – 3:37.45
3rd – Mahogany Mobley – 200 – 23.93
3rd – Jessica Palisca – Mile – 4:46.23
3rd – Alivia Rivera-Norman – 60 Hurdles – 8.43
Men's Day 2 Record Breakers
Program Record – Gilles Ouedraogo – Triple Jump – 53-1
Previous Record: 52-7.25 by Ouedraogo at the Tiger Paw Invitational on Feb. 14
Liberty Freshman Record – Tahj Brown – 60 Hurdles – 7.70
Previous Record: 7.85 by Brown during Friday's prelims
Women's Day 2 Record Breakers
Program Record – Smith, Bryan, Merritt, Mobley – 4 x 400 – 3:37.45
Previous Record: 3:39.06 by Cortney Strohman, Ty'Asia Dansbury, Delaney McDowell and Tanner Ealum at the ECAC Championship on March 3, 2019
Liberty Freshman Record – Eden Alexander – 800 – 2:07.70
Previous Record: 2:09.61 by Jessica Palisca on Feb. 4, 2023
Day 2 Updates to Liberty's All-Time Men's Top 10 List
No. 1 – Triple Jump – Gilles Ouedraogo – 53-1
No. 2 – 60 Hurdles – Tahj Brown – 7.70
No. 2 – Triple Jump – Joshua Smith – 52-2
No. 3 – 400 – Simon Lamparelli – 46.99
No. 3 – 800 – Brendan Pitcher – 1:50.74
No. 4 – Triple Jump – Markus White – 50-11.5
No. 8 – Shot Put – Christian Hicks – 59-3
No. 8 – 4 x 400 – Lamparelli, Pitcher, Nicholson, Long – 3:13.61
Day 2 Updates to Liberty's All-Time Women's Top 10 List
No. 1 – 4 x 400 – Smith, Bryan, Merritt, Mobley – 3:37.45
No. 2 – 200 – Mahogany Mobley – 23.93
No. 6 – Mile – Jessica Palisca – 4:46.23
No. 8 – 800 – Eden Alexander – 2:07.70
No. 8 – High Jump – Eva Whiteman – 5-7.25
Up Next
The 2026 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships will take place March 13-14 at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville, Ark. The full field of participants will be announced Tuesday evening on NCAA.com, with Gilles Ouedraogo (men's triple jump) and Allie Zealand (women's mile and 3K) in contention for national berths.
Most of Liberty's athletes will now turn their attention to the outdoor track & field season. The Flames' first outdoor meet will be the Bob Davidson Team Challenge, March 20-21 in High Point, N.C.
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