Houston track & field comes up short at NCAA Championships

Houston track & field squad competed in six events at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore., June 10-12, as the 2024 100-meter champion senior Louie Hinchliffe returned to the national stage.

Hinchliffe clinched second-team All-American honors in the 100-meter, after finishing 13th in the event, running a time of 10.08.

He was also part of the Cougar 4×100-meter team that qualified for the final round after finishing their first race in third place, behind a time of 38.34, which is the third-best time in program history.

The team of graduate Ryan Mulholland, freshman Sean Aigboboh, junior Jaelyn Reeves-Lile and Hinchliffe was not able to finish the finals race after a failed handoff.

Houston ended up with zero points as a program, the first time since 2008 that both the men and the women got shut out at the national championships.

In the shot put, junior Cordell Nwokeji placed 21st with a distance of 17.49 meters for the men. While sophomore Cleo Agyepong got 23rd with a distance of 15.74 meters. Agyepong was the women’s sole representative for the Cougars at this meet.

The men’s 4×400-meter relay team, consisting of sophomore Damarien Jacobs, graduate Trey East III, sophomore King Taylor and freshman Dominic Harper, ran a time of 3:05.89, getting them 21st place after the preliminary round.

The field season officially closed as junior Antrea Mita was unable to clear the starting height of 2.11m in the high jump, tying for last in the event.

This officially marks the end of the 2026 NCAA track and field season. Now, Houston will look to improve upon its NCAA Championships finishes, and in the competitions where it failed to qualify.