LAKE CHARLES, La. – HCU track & field earned seven event wins at the program's opening indoor meet of the 2026 season on Friday at the McNeese Indoor I.
Junior
Layloni Watson enjoyed a strong first meet as a Husky with a pair of event wins. She placed first in the triple jump with a top mark of 12.06m/39-6.75 while also earning the win in the long jump with a leap of 5.71m/18-8.75. Teammate
Anouk Verdaasdonk set a new PR en route to a second place finish, jumping 5.53m/18-1.75.
In the men's jumps, the HCU trio of
Dadrian Calhoun,
Josh Gillis-Harry and
Balvin Israel all placed in the top four in the long jump and the triple jump. Calhoun won the long jump with a mark of 6.95m/22-9.50 while taking second in the triple jump at 14.95m/49-0.50. Gillis-Harry took the top spot in the TJ, leaping 15.02/49-3.25 while placing fourth in the LJ with a mark of 6.75m/22-1.75. Israel, making his HCU debut, leapt 6.90m/22-7.75 to come in second in the LJ while finishing fourth in the TJ with a mark of 14.41m/47-3.25.
HCU earned wins in both the men's and women's high jump events with sophomore
Kade Stevens winning the men's side with an indoor PR jump of 1.98m/6-6.00. Teammates
Adryan Schuetz and
Julius Malone finished right behind him with top marks of 1.93m/6.400. Freshman
Angela Hindes cleared 1.63m/5-4.25 in her first collegiate meet to earn the women's title while junior
Emily Morais posted a best of 1.58m/5-2.25 for a new PR.
The Huskies' men's 4x400 relay team of
Humza Baig, Rayhan Mourtade,
Nicholas Collins and
Ashton Munoz-Nieves raced to a win with a time of 3:25.57.The women's 4x400 team consisting of
Sarah Pantophlet,
Kayci McBride-Davis,
Olivia Smith-Young and
Olivia Ruiz came in third, finishing in 4:09.60.
Jazlynn Estrada set a new PR in the mile, finishing third with a time of 5:23.56 with
Cara Gary coming in two spots back with a mark of 5:32.84.
Colby Kurtz placed fourth in the men's 3,000 meters with a new PR mark of 8:42.23 while teammate
Reyes Carrera finished third in the women's 3,000m, crossing the finish line in 10:28.05.
Aidan Bates raced to a time of 42.14 in the men's 400 meters, finishing second while Morais came in third in the women's 800m with a time of 10:28.05. In the women's shot put,
Storm Evans and
Taylor Brown placed fourth and fifth with throws of 12.23m/40-1.50 and 12.16m/39-10.75, respectively.
The Huskies return to action on Jan. 30-31 at the University of Houston Robert Platt Invitational across town inside the Yeoman Fieldhouse.
