Youngstown State Wins 2026 Outdoor #HLTF Championships

Youngstown State Wins 2026 Outdoor #HLTF Championships

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ROCHESTER, MICH. (May 10, 2026) – At the end of the third and final day of the 2026 Outdoor #HLTF Championships, the Youngstown State men’s and women’s teams earned their respective championship trophies. The men, with a score of 264, won their seventh straight outdoor championship while the women won their fifth in the last six years with 172 points.
 
Dig Deeper:
  • Day three started off in the pole vault, where Milwaukee’s Emma Johnson took the women’s title with a mark of 3.92m. Lukas Lang of Youngstown State won the men’s competition with a clearance of 4.80m.
  • Next was the high jump, where Detroit Mercy’s Nadia Hill won the women’s championship with a jump of 1.72m. Thomas Cook of Wright State earned the men’s title with a winning jump of 2.11m.
  • In the triple jump, Milwaukee’s Anna Szepieniec won the women’s triple jump with a mark of 12.13m. The men’s triple jump went to Brayden Green of Youngstown State with a winning leap of 14.77m.
  • Ali Sparks of Purdue Fort Wayne won the title in the women’s hammer throw for the third consecutive year, recording a throw of 53.91m. Youngstown State’s Robert Glassmeyer earned first place honors for the men with a winning throw of 55.09m.
  • In the first running event of the day, the 4x100m relay, Youngstown State’s women took the crown with a time of 46.20. The Penguin men also earned first place by clocking in at 41.05.
  • Next, the women’s 1500m run was claimed by McKinley Fielding of Youngstown State with a Horizon League championship record time of 4:24.30m. For the second straight year, the men’s 1500m champion was IU Indianapolis’ Luke Shappell, coming in first at 3:45.37.
  • Lea Parham of Youngstown State finished first in the women’s 100m hurdles, with a time of 13.74. Youngstown State’s Micah Mitchell won the 110m hurdles title with a time of 14.14.
  • In an exciting finish for the women’s 400m dash, Cameron Bitterman of Northern Kentucky emerged victorious for the second straight year with a record-breaking time of 54.14. Milwaukee’s Ty Bauschelt won the men’s 400m dash by crossing the line in a record time of 46.53.
  • Moving to the 100m dash, winning the women’s side was Hannah Falknor of Wright State with a time of 11.76. Purdue Fort Wayne’s Noah Morris placed first for the men in a time of 10.67.
  • The 800m run saw Bella Hodges of Purdue Fort Wayne win the women’s title with a time of 2:09.17, while Trenton Shutters of Youngstown State claimed the men’s title for the second year in a row with a time of 1:50.77.
  • Sierra Kendall of Northern Kentucky earned first place in the women’s 400m hurdles with a time of 1:00.00. Oakland’s Ja-Van Poole won the men’s 400m hurdles for the second consecutive year with a time of 51.69.
  • The 200m dash ended with Cameron Bitterman of Northern Kentucky winning the women’s race, crossing the line in 23.95. Purdue Fort Wayne’s Noah Morris placed first in the men’s race by finishing in 21.50.
  • Julia Dill of RMU took the top spot in the women’s 5000m run by clocking in a championship record time at 16:27.91. Northern Kentucky‘s Natnael Weldemichael won the men’s 5000m for a second time with a championship-record time of 14:13.88.
  • In the final event of the meet, the 4x400m relays, Northern Kentucky won the women’s race with a time of 3:43.86 and Milwaukee took the men’s race with a time of 3:12.81

2026 Outdoor #HLTF Championships Specialty Award Winners:
Women’s Freshman of the Year/Running – Tori Atkins, Youngstown State
Men’s Freshman of the Year/Running – Ty Bauschelt, Milwaukee
Women’s Freshman of the Year/Field – Nevia Levenhagen, Milwaukee
Men’s Freshman of the Year/Field – Thomas Cook, Wright State
Women’s Championship Outstanding Performer in Running – Cameron Bitterman, Northern Kentucky
Men’s Championship Outstanding Performer in Running – Noah Morris, Purdue Fort Wayne
Women’s Championship Outstanding Performer/Field – Kallie Volk, Milwaukee
Men’s Championship Outstanding Performer/Field – Josh Cygan, Milwaukee
Women’s Coach of the Year – Steve Kruse, Northern Kentucky
Men’s Coach of the Year – Aaron Combs, Purdue Fort Wayne
 
Final Team Scores:
Men:
  1. Youngstown State – 264
  2. Purdue Fort Wayne – 129.5
  3. Milwaukee – 121.5
  4. Oakland – 72
  5. Detroit Mercy – 68
  6. Northern Kentucky – 64
  7. Wright State – 63
  8. IU Indianapolis – 35
 
Women:
  1. Youngstown State – 172
  2. Milwaukee – 163.5
  3. RMU – 126
  4. Purdue Fort Wayne – 79
  5. Northern Kentucky – 74.5
  6. Oakland – 70
  7. Detroit Mercy – 41
  8. Wright State – 37
  9. IU Indianapolis – 30
  10. Cleveland State – 25