Track & Field | 5/28/2026 11:29:00 PM

LEXINGTON, Ky – The North Carolina A&T outdoor women's track and field team had three ladies compete on Thursday at the 2026 NCAA East First Round at the University of Kentucky's Outdoor Track and Field Complex.

The Aggies did not have anyone advance to Saturday's quarterfinals, but three seniors gave tremendous effort. Meanwhile, the Lady Aggies still have events remaining at the First Round in Lexington, Ky. On Thursday, A&T opened with senior jumper Olivia Dowd and senior hurdler Zamia Stelly in the long jump and 100-meter hurdles, followed by the 100 meters.

Dowd, the first A&T women's long jumper to compete in the first round in five years, landed at 19 feet, 3 ¼ inches. Dowd came into Thursday's first round having cleared 20-plus feet twice this season, including a personal record 20 feet, 6 ½ inches at LSU on April 25. Dowd placed 36th overall in the long jump, failing to qualify for the 2026 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

The top 12 from Thursday's long jump are headed to Eugene, led by Charleston Southern's Maeva Tahou (21 feet, 4 ¼ inches). Dowd has also earned the opportunity to compete again—this time in the women's triple jump on Saturday at 6 p.m. She will become the first female Aggie to compete in both the long jump and triple jump at an NCAA regional/preliminary round.

While Dowd leaped in the long jump on Thursday, Stelly, positioned on the track for the 100H, saw her career end abruptly with a disqualification. This was a disappointing finish for Stelly, who had run a personal-best 13.36 just two weeks ago at a last-chance meet.

Meanwhile, for junior Makenna Urbanek, another notable career may be coming to an end as she considers focusing on academics and her future pursuits. On Thursday, she ran 11.419 to take sixth in the sixth heat and placed 31st overall, just fractions of a second behind Pitt's Somiyah Braggs (11.418). The top 24 from the 100m advanced to Saturday's quarterfinals, beginning at 6:35 p.m.  

Next, senior Taylor Reagor will join Dowd on Saturday for competition at UK. Reagor has qualified for the women's discus, which starts at 1 p.m. The men's events follow on Friday with a full slate.

Freshman Everett Alston opens Friday's competition in the discus at 1 p.m. The Aggies' 4x100-meter relay team follows at 5 p.m. Next, the triple jump features senior Xavier Partee and sophomore Ty'Heak Buie at 6 p.m. Senior Jason Holmes then takes the track for the 110H at 6:15 p.m., aiming for Eugene, followed by the Taylor Twins – Isaiah and Xzaviah – adding to the day in the 400H at 7:25 p.m.

At 7:50 p.m., senior Jalen Booth-Mitchell will try to reach the 200m semifinals in Eugene after running a personal record 20.58 in the 200m First Round on Wednesday. The 4x400 team will wrap up competition at 8:45 p.m. on Friday.