LINCOLN, Neb. — Depth showed as Nebraska Wesleyan men's and women's track and field delivered a complete performance at the Prairie Wolf Indoor Invitational on Friday inside the University of Nebraska's Devaney Center. Competing in the third indoor meet of the 2025-26 season, the Prairie Wolves claimed multiple event victories, stacked finals appearances across the sprints and hurdles, and logged a full slate of podium finishes in the field events. No team scores were kept, but Nebraska Wesleyan left little doubt about its balance from the short sprints through the throws.

The headline moment came on the women's side in the 60-meter hurdles, where Rachel Smith won the event and moved into fourth place in program history with a time of 8.86. The men answered right back as Jacob Young captured the 60-meter hurdles title in 8.31, while Connor Plahn's 8.31 in prelims vaulted him into ninth on the Prairie Wolf all-time list. Nebraska Wesleyan's sprint group was equally dominant in the 60-meter dash, placing five men in the finals and securing five of the top six positions.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Sprints and hurdles set the tone early. Smith's winning run in the 60-meter hurdles highlighted a strong women's hurdles group, while Young led a deep men's field in the same event. Plahn followed up his historic prelim with a third-place finish in the finals, and freshman Connor Halde continued to impress by qualifying for the final with an 8.49.

The men's 60-meter dash was a Prairie Wolf showcase. Ghaith Taha won the final in 6.91, leading a tightly packed trio behind him. Max Lyon finished third in 7.04, Steven Dalmeida took fourth at 7.04, and Bladen Kohl followed closely in fifth at 7.04, with just .007 seconds separating the three. Sophomore Jacob Adams rounded out the group with a 7.09 after also qualifying for the final.

On the women's side, Nebraska Wesleyan saw a strong debut from Aaliyah Franklin, who qualified for the 60-meter dash finals in 8.06 and finished seventh. Franklin stayed busy in the field as well, placing fourth in the long jump with a mark of 5.25 meters (17 feet, 2.75 inches). Chloe Mooberry added a sixth-place finish in the long jump at 5.14 meters (16-10.5).

In the middle-distance and distance events, freshman Noah Thomas continued his early-season consistency by finishing third in the 3,000 meters with a time of 8:51.18.

Relay squads turned in solid efforts to close out the track action. The women's 4x400-meter relay team of Ainsley Galyen, Mooberry, Raegan Levi and Delaney Vacek placed third in 4:00.58. The men's quartet of McClain Meyer, Barrett Mayfield, Plahn and Danny Richardson matched that finish, taking third in 3:24.04.

Field events provided consistency throughout the day. Graham Peterson cleared 4.20 meters to finish third in the men's pole vault, while Libby Driver placed ninth in the women's pole vault at 2.87 meters. Kaelyn Means recorded a third-place finish in the women's weight throw with a mark of 15.98 meters.

Sam Clements delivered a pair of podium finishes on the men's side, placing third in the weight throw at 15.48 meters and third again in the shot put at 15.86 meters. Colin Wojtkiewicz finished runner-up in the shot put with a throw of 16.69 meters, and freshman Aubrie McDonald added a third-place finish in the women's shot put at 12.06 meters. Lachlan Pickering rounded out the field highlights with a third-place finish in the triple jump, posting a mark of 13.21 meters.

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