WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Track & Field’s 27 qualifications to the NCAA East First Round prepares for the road to nationals in Lexington, Kentucky (May 27-30). Each day of the meet will begin streaming on ESPN+ at the start of the running events.
Seamus Malaski and Marissa Palmer lead the Boilers’ entry total with three events scheduled. Praise Aniamaka holds the highest regional ranking overall with his second-ranked spot in the triple jump, while Amarianna Lofton leads the women’s side tied for fifth in the high jump.
The top 48 individuals and top 24 relays qualified for the east and west first round competitions. The top 12 individuals and top 12 relays will all qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Men’s Notes
• Aniamaka holds Purdue’s highest NCAA East ranking at No. 2 in the triple jump after his Big Ten-winning 16.73m (54-10.75w). It marked his third Big Ten title outdoors and raised his national ranking to No. 5. He aims to qualify for his third outdoor NCAAs.
• Malaski qualified in all three of his events (discus, hammer throw and shot put). He is ninth regionally in the hammer and 10th in the shot put. He is top 25 nationally in both events.
• Samuel Vessat ranks No. 7 in the east in the 400m after his 44.94 earlier this season that was the No. 3 all-time performance by a French runner and is No. 1 in 2026 by a European runner. He is No. 9 in the NCAA and helps Purdue’s 4x400m rank No. 7 in the country.
• The 4x400m of Victory Achakpoekri, Vessat, Zach Mylenek and Zyan Greene ran 3:02.15 back in April for its No. 7 national ranking. Jax Coleman ran in place of Greene at the Big Ten Championships to help Purdue earn silver in 3:04.84.
• Chidozie Kalu is coming off a Big Ten bronze in the triple jump after he went 16.30m (53-05.75). With the wind at +4.1, the mark does not count for his regional ranking and Kalu sits 30th. He will look to qualify for his first NCAA Championships since 2024 while he was at Virginia Tech.
• Hugh Jacobsmeyer, Purdue’s 800m and 1500m record holder, leads the program’s distance group with his No. 36 regional ranking in the 800m.
Women’s Notes
• Lofton is tied for fifth in the NCAA East and 21st in the high jump (1.83m / 6-00.00). She joined Purdue after she was a two-time NCAA Division II All-American at Central State.
• Alexia Smith is Purdue’s highest individual NCAA East track rank with her No. 11 performance in the 400m (51.22). The time was set in the Big Ten prelims to lead the field before she took silver in the finals. She also headlines Purdue’s No. 10 ranked 4x400m.
• The 4x400m of Smith, Taiye Ayenuro, Palmer and Gia Clay is 10th with their 3:29.57 in April. The group, with Smith and Ayenuro flipped in the order during Big Tens, took silver in 3:30.30.
• Palmer is set to compete in the 200m and 4x100m in addition to her spot on the 4x400m. She holds the No. 16 ranking in the 200m and runs the second leg on the 4x100m. She was 17th at last season’s NCAA East in the 100m as a freshman at Georgia State.
• Britannie Johnson is 14th in the NCAA East in the shot put (16.72m / 54-10.25) and is 27th nationally. Her sister Britannia Johnson leads the twins in discus ranking at 22nd (55.06m / 180-08), while Britannie Johnson follows in 27th (54.60m / 179-02).
• Blessing Gideon qualified for the NCAA East in both the long and triple jump and her triple jump ranks 14th (13.20m / 43-03.75). She reached the podium in both events at the Big Ten Championships.
Next Up
Boilers who are in the top 12 of their respective events will conclude the season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships from June 10-13 in Eugene, Oregon.
Purdue Men’s First Round Qualifiers (Regional Ranking)
400m: Samuel Vessat (7th)
800m: Hugh Jacobsmeyer (36th)
10,000m: Nathan Walker (45th)
3000mSC: Douglas Buckeridge (44th)
4x400m (5th)
Triple Jump: Praise Aniamaka (2nd), Chidozie Kalu (30th)
High Jump: Elliot Ryba (19th)
Discus: Seamus Malaski (33rd), Joel Gates (47th)
Hammer Throw: Seamus Malaski (9th), Leo Maxwell (33rd)
Shot Put: Seamus Malaski (10th), Joel Gates (29th)
Purdue Women’s First Round Qualifiers (Regional Ranking)
200m: Marissa Palmer (16th), Ashley Odiase (32nd)
400m: Alexia Smith (11th), Gia Clay (36th)
4x100m (17th)
4x400m (10th)
Long Jump: Blessing Gideon (42nd)
Triple Jump: Blessing Gideon (14th)
High Jump: Amarianna Lofton (5th), Jubilee Felder (24th)
Discus: Britannia Johnson (22nd), Britannie Johnson (27th)
Shot Put: Britannie Johnson (15th)
