Big Red Women Picked to Finish Fifth, Men Eighth in NCAC Indoor Track and FIeld Pre-Championship Polls

Men's Track and Field | 2/25/2026 11:48:00 AM

Cleveland, Ohio (February 18) - On February 18, the North Coast Athletic Conference released their indoor track and field pre-championship polls for the upcoming 2026 NCAC Indoor Track and Field Championships. The Big Red women's team was picked fifth, while the men's were slotted eighth.

Women's Track and Field

The Big Red got out to a head start last weekend at the combined events championships, as senior Sydney Brown earned All-NCAC honors with a third place finish in the pentathlon, while sophomore Julia Schena finished fourth to place Denison second with 11 points in the Indoor Track and Field Championships.

Sprints/Distance

Denison has eight athletes qualify for time in sprints and distance, with most notably sophomore Mira Renaldi in the 60-meter hurdles, where she sits third with a school-record time of 8.97. Brown follows her up at sixth with a time of 9.36. Senior Emily Brennan has earned a top-7 finish in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.96 at the Bob Shannon Invitational. She along with first-year Arialyn Bischak have qualified for the 400-meter dash. First-year Shaylee Murdough has recorded a top-10 time in the 800-meter run and 1-mile run, posting a time of 2:21.91 in the 800-meter, and 5:11.13 in the 1-mile.

In the relays, the Big Red will field teams in all three events, with the 4x200 team consisting of Piper Lee, Emily Brennan, Bischak and Renaldi currently rank third with a time of 1:46.11. The 4x400 relay team sits fourth with a time of 4:02.83.

Field

The Big Red have eight top-10 marks in field events, with five of them being in the top-five. Sophomore Emery Kurth holds two-three marks in the high jump and long jump, as she is second in the high jump with a mark of 1.54m, and third in long jump with a jump of 5.39m. Schena recently jumped into the top-10 in high jump with a mark of 1.50m at the NCAC combined events championships. In shot put, senior Sydney Flores and first-year Gabrielle Turner hold top-five marks, as Flores sits second with a throw of 12.45m, while Turner is fourth with a mark of 11.64m. Schena and Bianchi have qualified for triple jump, as the duo sits in the top-eight with Schena being fifth with a mark of 10.64m, and Bianchi sitting eighth with a jump of 10.36m. In weight throw, junior Mariel Drost has thrown for a top-mark of 13.55m for a position of eighth to qualify.

Men's Track and Field

The men's track and field team has 24 qualifying times across the board while the relay teams have posted top-six marks. The Big Red comes in ranked eighth in the pre-championship poll, and came in third last season.

Sprints/Distance

Recent NCAC Athlete of the Week Oliver DiCerbo holds two top-10 times in distance categories. The senior currently ranks seventh in both the 1-mile run and 3,000-meter run, as he put up a time of 4:18.32 in the 1-mile, and 8:39.89 in the 3,000. Senior Noah Cyr and first-year Will Jackson have top-five times in the 5,000-meter. Cyr posted a third place mark of 15:25.49 at the Steemer Showcase, while Jackson sits right behind at fourth with a time of 15:26.14. Sophomores Jake McCann and Caleb Zell- Ratner hold two qualifying times in the 60-meter dash and 200-meter dash. McCann is 10th in the 60-meters with a time of 7.01 and 19th in the 200-meters at 22.46. Zell-Ratner falls right behind McCann in the 60-meters at 11th with a time of 7.02, and is just ahead at 18th with a time of 22.46 in the 200-meters. In the 60-meter hurdles, first-year Felix Martin ranks 10th with a time of 8.81, and fellow first-year Wade Nguyen sits 12th with a time of 8.84. Junior Jack Meyerowitz (400-meters; 50.30; 13th) and first-year Zion Edwards (800-meters; 1:58.15; 15th) also hold qualifying times.

In the relays, the Big Red will send out all three entries, with most notably the 4x200 relay consisting of McCann, Zell- Ratner, Pierce Patterson, and Meyerowitz who currently sit fourth with a time of 1:29.53.

Field

Junior Justin King currently holds a top-five mark in shot put, ranking fourth with a throw of 14.81m. Fellow junior Reed Nobili ranks 12th with a mark of 13.57m. In the triple jump, sophomore Eric Ott reached a qualifying mark of 13.04m to rank eighth, and first-year Nate McCleery ranks eighth as well in the long jump (6.56m). Sophomore Joe Teates and first-year Tyler McClintock-Comeaux are tied for 12th in the pole vault with a mark of 3.95m.

The Big Red head out to Springfield, Ohio on February 27-28 to compete. For more information, click here.

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