BOSTON - All nine #AETF schools will travel to the campus of UMass Lowell this weekend for the 2026 America East Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The two-day event, beginning Saturday, May 7th, will be streamed live on ESPN+.
For more information on the upcoming championship, visit #AETF Championships Central.
A FEW THINGS TO KNOW
- Last Year: UAlbany swept the Outdoor Championship last year with both the men’s and women’s side securing first place.
- The UAlbany women recorded 187 points.New Hampshire (128) edged out Bryant University (127.5) by just half a point. Binghamton (106), UMBC (105), Maine (72), Vermont (55), UMass Lowell (43), and NJIT ( 33) rounded out the field.
- On the men’s side, the Great Danes scored 163.5 points. UMBC (145), UMass Lowell (129), and Maine (119) were the only other teams to surpass the 100-point mark. Binghamton (84), New Hampshire (81.5), Bryant (64), Vermont (43), and NJIT (29) completed the standings.
WOMEN'S ATHLETES TO WATCH
Alyssa Armitage, Binghamton – The senior pole vault specialist has claimed four indoor gold medals in her signature event, and after a pair of top-three finishes at the outdoor championship, she’s looking to take home gold as she heads into the meet as the top seed.
Ava Roberts, UMBC – The indoor shot put champion and weight throw medalist is looking to add more hardware to the shelf as she enters the meet seeded first in the shot put, second in the discus, and seventh in the hammer throw.
Sarah Moore, New Hampshire – Moore has won seven of her nine long jump competitions since the start of 2025, including both the 2026 America East Indoor Championship and the NEICAAA Indoor Championship. Moore was named the 2026 America East Women’s Indoor Performer of the Year and looks to continue her successful season this week in the long jump and 200m.
Jayani Santos, UMass Lowell – Santos has crossed the line first in both the 200m and 400m at an America East Indoor Championship, but she has yet to bring home gold at an outdoor America East meet. The junior sprinter’s best outdoor finish came last year when she earned the silver medal in the 200m. She’ll be looking to upgrade that 2025 silver to 2026 gold.
Katie Schwaner, UMBC – The sophomore middle-distance runner has made major improvements since the 2024-25 season. Schwaner crossed the line first in the 800m at the indoor championship, running 2:09.91, and brought home a pair of silver medals in the 1000m and as a member of the Retrievers’ 4x800 relay.
Skyler Smith, UAlbany – The senior Great Dane heads into the outdoor championship meet with the fastest times in both the 800m and 1500m. At the indoor championship, she brought home four medals, placing second in the 800m, third in the 1000m, and running legs on both the 4x800 and distance medley relay.
Jasmine Trott, Bryant – The senior, originally from across the pond, has had an outstanding 2025-26 campaign so far. She crossed the line first at the 2025 AEXC Championship before punching her ticket to the 2025 NCAA XC Championship. She recorded a pair of podium finishes at the indoor conference championship meet and is looking to grab her first individual America East gold medal when she races the 5k and 10k.
MEN'S ATHLETES TO WATCH
Yoofi Abaka-Amuah, New Hampshire – The 2026 America East Men’s Indoor Performer of the Year is looking to continue his throwing dominance. The senior Wildcat claimed gold in both the shot put and weight throw at the America East Indoor Championship and has won four of his five shot put competitions since then, including the 2026 NEICAAA Indoor Championship.
Andrew Card, Maine – Card, last year’s America East Outdoor 400m bronze medalist, is back and looking to upgrade to gold. The sophomore from Maine finished runner-up at the 2025 championship, and his personal best of 47.19 came at the 2025 indoor championship meet. He heads into the meet as the top seed with a season-best time of 47.23.
Brennan Delany, Binghamton – One of the top multis in the nation is going with a “lighter” workload this weekend. Instead of competing in the 10-event decathlon, the sophomore will take on five separate individual events. Delany is undefeated in America East multi-event competitions, having won three straight, but this weekend he’ll look to score major points for the Bearcats.
Tooni Ogunyeye, UAlbany – The fastest man in America East swept the short sprints indoors, crossing the line first in both the 60m and 200m. At last year’s championship, he left with a pair of gold medals in the 100m and 4x100 relay and was the runner-up in the 200m.
Iosif Papa, UMBC – One of the best throwers in the nation is looking to claim his third discus title. His worst conference finish in his signature event came in 2024, when he placed second with a throw of 52.60m. The senior thrower owns a lifetime best of 59.86m, which puts him ahead of the next-best seed in the league by more than seven meters. He finished 17th at last year’s NCAA Outdoor Championship meet and will look to return after taking care of business this weekend.
Jacob Smith, UAlbany – The America East Indoor Mile champion is looking to grab gold in the metric mile this weekend as the top seed. The senior Great Dane also ran a leg on the gold medal-winning 4x800 relay at the indoor championship. He’ll look to use his 49-second 400m speed to cross the line first this week.
Wouter Van Den Akker, UMass Lowell – The hometown hero, Van Den Akker, has three America East gold medals to his name. He crossed the line first at the AEXC Championship and claimed his first track gold at the 2026 indoor championship in the 3k. An NCAA XC qualifier in the fall, the senior enters the meet as the top seed in both the 5k and 10k and is looking to close out his season with more gold medals.
The two-day event will be streamed live on ESPN+ starting Saturday. For the full schedule, live streaming links, and more visit #AETF Championship Central.
Follow @AmericaEast on X to get the real-time championship updates. Use #AETF to join the conversation.