Track & Field Set For Big 12 Indoor Championship

ORLANDO – The UCF track and field team will kickoff postseason in a familiar setting this weekend, heading to Lubbock, Texas, to compete in the 2026 Big 12 Indoor Championships at the Sports Performance Center on the campus of Texas Tech.

Competition begins Friday, Feb. 27, with an action-packed day of preliminary events. The Knights will then turn their focus to Saturday’s finals on Feb. 28, where they will look to snag some hardware ahead of the meet’s concluding event, the 4x400-meter relay at 6:40 PM EST.

Last season, head coach Dana Boone and her squad delivered an impressive showing, guiding the Knights to a tie for 11th place with 38 points, an extraordinary 17-point improvement from the program’s inaugural Big 12 Indoor Championships. The team returned home with plenty of hardware, highlighted by a program-first Big 12 Indoor Championship title in the 4x400m relay.

LAST TIME OUT
The squad is coming off one of its strongest meets of the season, exiting the Tyson Invitational with a wave of personal bests and standout all-time program marks.

Leading the charge, the 4x400m relay team of Janiah Pulliam, Genelle Stephens, Jazmen Newberry and Twaneise Johnson turned in an impressive 3:29.21. The performance shattered the previous program record of 3:29.93, set almost exactly one year earlier at the same meet (Feb. 15, 2025). The mark currently stands as the fastest time in the Big 12 and ranks eighth nationally.

The sprints squad also turned in a standout performance in the 200m, with Pulliam (23.27s), Newberry (23.47s) and Samiyah Roberson (23.78s) each posting new personal bests. Pulliam and Newberry also etched their names into the program record book, moving into the No. 5 and No. 9 spots all-time, respectively.

Alexandra Raquet highlighted a strong outing for UCF’s distance group, turning in a dominant performance in the 3000m. The junior crushed her previous personal best, clocking a 9:25.33 to claim first place. Her performance also vaulted her to No. 2 all-time in program history in the event, further solidifying her momentum heading into the postseason.

STARTING BLOCKS

• 4x400m success: Favorites in the event, the Knights will look to mirror their success in the 4x400m relay from last season. Coming off a program-best performance (3:29.21), Boone and her squad will look to bring home back-to-back golds in the event.
• Distance Growth: One of the strongest seasons the distance group has turned in to date, head coach Bryan Harmon and his squad will look to make their mark in one of the most competitive fields in the country. Raquet and Yvone Sandui have led the charge, each delivering consistently among the top marks in program history and setting the tone for the group’s continued rise.
• Sprinting Success: The sprints have been a cornerstone for the Black and Gold during the Boone era, accounting for multiple top-10 finishes across several events at last year’s championship meet. Pulliam enters as a strong contender in the 200m after clocking a personal-best 23.27 at the team’s most recent meet, a time that ranks fifth in the conference.
• Jumps Rebuild: Coach Honeycutt heads into the indoor championship with a nearly all-new roster following the departure of last season's pentathlon medalist, Natalia Madison. Despite the turnover, the group has shown strong progress, highlighted by freshman Jasmine Ross’ ninth-place long jump finish (6.08m) at the Knights’ last meet. The mark, a season best, ranks No. 5 in program history.

EVENTS TO WATCH

Field

• Long Jump (Friday, 5 PM) 
• Triple Jump (Saturday, 3 PM) 

Running

• 60M Hurdles First Round (Friday, 3:30 PM) 
• 4x400M Relay (Friday, 6:40 PM)
• 200M (Friday, 6:25 PM)
• Distance Medley Relay (Friday, 7:50 PM)