BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi track & field team competes in its biggest meet of the 2026 season so far this week, heading to Birmingham, Alabama on Wednesday and Thursday for the Southland Conference Indoor Championships.
The Indoor Championships will take place at the Birmingham CrossPlex, with the action for the Islanders currently set to get going at 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday in the finals of the women's 5000m and extending all the way through 7 p.m. with the men's distance medley relay. The meet will then wrap up on Thursday, kicking off at 10:40 a.m. with the women's shot put and concluding at 3:20 p.m. with the finals of the men's 4x400m relay.
"It's been a great season," Islanders head coach
Bryan Jackson said. "Their energy is high and we are extremely healthy, which is a great place to be this time of year. Our season all comes down to one weekend, and I'm extremely confident in this group."
The Islanders will be trying to improve upon their placements from last year's championships, where the women came in fourth and the men tied for eighth among the 12 teams in the Southland. For the women, this was the best placement at an Indoor Championship in program history, surpassing a pair of fifth place finishes from both 2008 and 2020. Individually, the team earned 10 medals in total and three golds from returners
Alicia Finnis in the 5000m and
Cyan Green in the weight throw and current graduate assistant coach
Emily Malouf in the shot put.
Heading into the week, A&M-Corpus Christi boasts several top competitors in their respective events. On the men's side, sophomore
Kye Lowth currently ranks first in the conference in the 3000m, while junior
Emmanuel Ekuma and sophomore
Armando Rivera rank third and fifth respectively in the shot put and the triple jump. For the women, three different athletes rank as top contenders, with those being Green in her defense of the weight throw title, junior
Natalia Rankin-Chitar in the shot put and sophomore
Elizabeth Khatevi in both the mile and the 3000m. In addition to this, sophomore
Phylis Kibet sits in the top five in three different events, ranking second in the 3000m behind only Khatevi, third in the 5000m and fifth in the mile.
Both days of the Southland Conference Indoor Championships will be available to watch live on ESPN+. The live results can also be followed along as they happen.
Indoor Meet 5 // A&M-Corpus Christi at Southland Conference Indoor Championships
Dates: Wednesday, February 23 and Thursday, February 24
Times: 12:00 p.m. CT (Wednesday) // 10:40 a.m. CT (Thursday)
Location: Birmingham CrossPlex // Birmingham, AL
Watch Live:
Wednesday //
Thursday
Live Results
Socials:
@IslandersTFXC (X) //
@IslandersTFXC (IG)
#ShakasUp
