Season Preview: Track & Field Set For 2026 Campaign

ORLANDO – After increasing its final position at both Big 12 indoor and outdoor championships last season, UCF track and field led by head coach Dana Boone are ready to return to action this weekend, kicking off the indoor season in Louisville, Kentucky, at the Rod McCravy Invitational.

During the 2025 campaign, Boone’s squad posted standout performances at both the Big 12 Indoor and Outdoor Championships, setting four program records during the indoor season and nearly doubling their point total from the previous year in Lubbock. The 4x400m relay squad won UCF’s first indoor event title in Big 12 history, sparking a run that carried into the NCAA Indoor Championships, where five Knights earned six Second Team All-America honors, the program’s strongest indoor nationals showing in more than a decade.

Outdoors, UCF secured its first top-10 team finish at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships with 41 points, yet another improvement from its mark the year before. The 4x400m squad once again struck gold, completing the indoor-outdoor sweep, while eight Knights advanced to the NCAA East Preliminary across seven events and four reached the NCAA Championships in Eugene.

SPRINTS/HURDLES
A staple of the Boone era, the sprints and hurdles group enters 2026 with high expectations, returning nine key contributors while adding a duo of highly touted transfers and one of the most talented freshman classes in the nation.

Among the key returners are Deja Shaw-Huckaby, Twaneise Johnson, Jazmen Newberry, Y’Vette Harris, and Janiah Pulliam. Shaw-Huckaby anchored the Knights’ Big 12 Indoor Championship–winning 4x400 relay team, earning second-team Indoor All-America honors. Newberry and Johnson were also instrumental in the program’s success, contributing to both the indoor and outdoor 4x400 relay sweeps. This season, the duo will look to add to their medal collections and vie for another trip to the NCAA Championships. 

UMBC transfer Genelle Stephens will bolster the Knights’ ongoing pursuit of excellence in both the 4x100 and 4x400 relays. Last season, she helped UMBC’s 4x400 squad secure its second consecutive America East title, finishing with a time of 3:47.39. Meanwhile, senior Toni Galloway, arriving from U Albany, is set to be a key addition to Boone’s hurdling dominance, having taken home the gold in the 100m hurdles last season, with a 13.38-second mark, at UCF’s very own Black & Gold Challenge.

Senior Ese Awusa, another staple returner, is poised to take the reins in the Knights’ hurdling events following the departure of program standout Adaobi Tabugbo. Awusa qualified for the NCAA East Prelims in the 100m hurdles and advanced to the second round, finishing 17th overall after posting a personal-best 13.18 in the preliminary round. She will look to build on her strong conclusion to 2025 while continuing Boone’s tradition of excellence in the 100m hurdles, a program that has produced five consecutive conference titles in the event.

At the forefront of Boone’s talented freshman class is Alexia Reid, the 2025 New Balance 100m hurdles champion, who clocked a 13.37 to claim the crown. Reid also captured Florida’s 3A high school titles in both the 100m hurdles (13.70) and the 400m hurdles (59.59). She’ll be joined by fellow New Balance competitor Morgan Rothwell, owner of an impressive 53.80 personal best in the 400m. Datavia Hunter and Samiyah Roberson round out an exceptionally deep freshman group.

JUMPS/MULTIS
Returning just one from his group last season, assistant coach Brody Honeycutt is gearing up to usher in a new era for the Knights' jumps and multi-program, welcoming in six talented transfers and a trio of promising freshmen. 

Lone returner, Angelina Horn, steps into a leadership role after the departure of one of the program’s most accomplished jumpers, Asherah Collins. Horn, who recorded three top-10 finishes in the triple jump for the Knights last season, will serve as the veteran voice for the group as she looks to build on her success and continue her development.

Headlining Honeycutt’s freshman class is Jasmine Ross, a two-time Missouri Class 5A state champion in the long jump and 100 meters. Ross also owns the Missouri high school state record in the long jump at 6.18 meters, positioning her as one of the program’s most anticipated collegiate newcomers. She is joined by Lilou Lapeyrie and Kaeli Powe, the 2024 Gatorade National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year, adding further depth to the group.

Seeking to add experienced reinforcements, Honeycutt also welcomes accomplished Eastern Washington transfer Kimberly “Tuti” Smith. Smith was a dominant force in the long jump during last year’s outdoor season, never finishing outside the top five for EWU. She is joined by transfers Faith Bethea (Rutgers), Jade Johnson (Texas A&M), Eva Bruve (Colorado), Omaria Gordon (South Carolina), and Paige Laffoon (Indiana).

Gordon, a native of Orlando, is positioned to step into a leading role in the multis following the graduation of Natalia Madison, who anchored the group for several seasons in both the heptathlon and pentathlon. Gordon recorded 2,961 points in the pentathlon at the SEC Indoor Championships last season, highlighted by a personal-best throw of 10.18 meters in the shot put and a fourth-place finish in the long jump at 5.98 meters.

DISTANCE
Following an exciting cross country campaign under third-year assistant coach Bryan Harmon—one that culminated in a program-best finish at the NCAA Regionals in November—the distance squad has plenty to look forward to in 2026. 

The team returns 12 athletes, including a veteran senior class of Kendall Hughes, Paige Jaszczak, and Izzy Richardson, bringing back one of its most seasoned distance squads in recent years. Hughes ranks top 10 all-time in both the mile (7th, 4:57.83) and 1000m (3rd, 2:55.21), while Jaszczak is coming off one of her best cross country seasons to date with a new personal best 5K of 18:41.1.

Sophomores Madison Patchan and Ava Quattrocchi, along with junior Yvone Sandui, also return as key contributors. Patchan and Quattrochi played pivotal roles in the program’s best-ever cross country regional finish this past fall as two of the top three scorers. Sandui, who made an immediate impact last season after transferring from Norfolk State, recording the program’s second-fastest outdoor 800m (2:04.94) and seventh-fastest 1500m (4:29.86), is also coming off a hot cross country season. Sandui now owns the second-fastest 5K time in program history at 17:11.9 and earned the program’s first-ever Big 12 Runner of the Week honor. 

With only five new faces joining the distance squad this year, the newcomer group may be small, but it is impactful. Freshmen Daisy Ross and Masha Dorofeev will make their collegiate track and field debuts, bolstering the already experienced lineup. While transfers, Alexandra Raquet (Louisville), Emily Wheldon (Georgia Southern) and Beti Manzano Jimeno (Jacksonville St.), will bring an additional edge and experience to the squad. 

Raquet quickly emerged as one of the Knights’ top performers on the cross country course this season, pacing the Black and Gold as the team’s top finisher in three of four meets she appeared in. She made multiple marks in the program record books, highlighted by a historic NCAA South Regional performance, placing 47th overall with a time of 20:29.29—a personal best, the best regional finish by a Knight, and the program’s second-fastest 6K time.

ABOUT UCF ATHLETICS
UCF is a proud member of the Big 12 Conference. Our mission is to positively transform the lives of our students academically, athletically, and personally through a nationally competitive intercollegiate athletics program that enhances the reputation and visibility of the University. We strive to be Florida's preeminent athletic program, representing UCF and our community with distinction on the national stage as "Orlando's Hometown Team". To learn more about UCF and Athletics, please visit our websites at www.ucf.edu and www.ucfknights.com.