OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU men's and women's track & field teams will start off its 2026 just down the road to Norman on Friday as the Evangels will be competing in the Owen Hewitt Invitational hosted by the University of Oklahoma at the Mosier Indoor Track Facility.
 
MEN'S EVENT SCHEDULE

• Mile Run – 10:50 am
  • Participants: Connor Gerth, Jaden Rodriguez, Jawad Salame, Saulo Castro
• 400-Meter Dash – 11:30 am
  • Participants: Jaden Ingram
• 800-Meter Run (Open) – 12 pm
  • Participants: Daniel Ponce, Jonathan Avila
• 200-Meter Run – 12:40 pm
  • Participants: Matthew Kletke
• 3000-Meter Run (Open) – 1:15 pm
  • Participants: Cameron Pearson, Blake Jensen, Aidan Collins
• 60-Meter Dash – 2:15 pm
  • Participants: Jagger Jay, Sam Boyes
• Pole Vault – 3:30 pm
  • Participants: Jagger Jay, Sam Boyes
• 800-Meter Run (Invite) – 6:30 pm
  • Participants: Mohamed Zairi, Collin Seely, Chase Cotarelo
• 3000-Meter Run (Invite) – 7:15 pm
  • Participants: Lucky Maila
• 4x400-Meter Relay – 7:45 pm
  • Participants: (A) Jaden Ingram, Chase Cotarelo, Mohamed Zairi, Jaden Rodriguez; (B) Collin Seely, Jonathan Avila, Matthew Kletke, Daniel Ponce; (C) Aidan Collins, Connor Gerth, Cameron Pearson, Jawad Salame

MEN'S EVENT NOTES

• Officially the second indoor meet for the MACU men's track & field team, the Evangels will be competing in 10 different events, including the first ever sprinting events with the 60, 200, and 400-meter events as well as first ever field events with the pole vault.
• Jagger Jay and Sam Boyes will be making their MACU debuts in the 60 and pole vault events while Jaden Ingram will also be making his MACU debut in the 400-meter. Matthew Kletke, who made his MACU debut in last month's PSU Crimson & Gold Invitational in the 4x400-meter relay will be running MACU's first ever 200-meter event.
• After Chase Cotarelo and Collin Seely competed in the 800-meter in last month's meet, the Evangels will elect to send out Daniel Ponce and Jonathan Avila in this week's open meet. Avila made his MACU track debut last month in the 4x400-meter relay while Ponce competed in the Mile at the PSU Crimson & Gold. Cotarelo and Seely will compete in the invite section of the 800-meter in the evening along with Mohamed Zairi competing in his first track event of the 2025-26 season.
• Following his record-breaking events in the 3000 and 5000-meter last month, setting NCCAA National Qualifying standards, Jaden Rodriguez will be looking to make his mark in the Mile while running alongside teammate Connor Gerth. Saulo Castro and Jawad Salame will also run in the Mile with both runners making their MACU track debuts after competing during the fall cross country season.
• Lucky Maila will look to lead MACU in the 3000-meter invitational race on Friday evening while Aidan Collins, Cameron Pearson, and Blake Jensen compete in the open 3000-meter in the afternoon. Maila set an NCCAA National Qualifying standard last month in the 5000-meter at the PSU Crimson & Gold Invitational.
• The Evangels will be busily competing in the 4x400-meter relay to wrap-up the evening as MACU will run out three different teams in the event. Competing in the A group for the Evangels will be Ingram, Cotarelo, Zairi, and Rodriguez, the B team will be Seely, Avila, Kletke, Ponce, and the C group will consist of Collins, Gerth, Pearson, and Salame.

WOMEN'S EVENT SCHEDULE

• 800-Meter Run – 11:45 am
  • Participants: Lisa Hernandez-Cruz, Kaia Henry, Mallory Foster-Anderson, Kaylee Campbell, Jessie Foster-Anderson
• 200-Meter Dash – 12:10 pm
  • Participants: Cora Eyler
• 60-Meter Hurdles – 4 pm
  • Participants: Cora Eyler

WOMEN'S EVENT NOTES

• Friday will mark the indoor season-opener for the MACU women's track & field team.
• Overall, five Evangels will be competing in the 800-meter run with Lisa Hernandez-Cruz, Kaia Henry, Mallory Foster-Anderson, Kaylee Campbell, and Jessie Foster-Anderson making their collegiate track debuts.
• Cora Eyler will be making her MACU track debut in two different events, starting with the 200-meter dash to start the afternoon before competing in the 60-meter hurdle event toward the evening.
• All three events will be firsts for the relatively new women's track & field program as the only events competed in by MACU before this season were during last year's season when Gracie Sanders competed in the Mile and 3000-meter as well as Ainsley Velasquez in the Mile at last year's Owen Hewitt on Jan. 17.