GAMBIER, Ohio – With the indoor season now in the rearview mirror, the Kenyon College men's track and field team turns its attention to the outdoor circuit. Armed with a pair of indoor All-Region honorees, several emerging contributors and a balanced group across the sprints, distance and field events, the Owls are set to begin a six-meet outdoor campaign with their sights set on climbing the standings at the 2026 North Coast Athletic Conference Championship.
2025 and Indoor Season Review
Kenyon finished seventh at the 2026 NCAC Indoor Championship, totaling 40 points in a tightly contested meet. The Owls finished ahead of rival Denison University, which placed eighth with 18 points, and The College of Wooster, which finished ninth with four points. During last season's outdoor championship meet, Kenyon scored 40 points and finished eighth overall.
Coaching Staff
Head coach Julius Higginbotham enters his fifth season at the helm for Kenyon, coming off an indoor campaign that saw multiple school records fall and two Owls earn All-Region honors. Taryn Sharp, hired in 2022, and Kirk Shellhouse, who joined the staff in 2023, return as assistant coaches.
NCAC Preseason Poll
The NCAC coaches do not vote on projected standings during the preseason. Instead, coaches are balloted a week before each of the conference championships. Looking back at this season's indoor poll, the Owls were picked to finish seventh and that's where they landed.
Returning All-Conference Honorees
Kenyon's lone All-Conference performer during the 2025 outdoor season was Charlie Blackmer, who delivered one of the Owls' top performances of the year in the 1,500-meter run. Blackmer clocked a personal-best time of 3:59.07, earning a third-place podium finish and securing Kenyon's highest placement of the meet. The Illinois native continued his impressive form during the 2026 indoor season. At the NCAC Indoor Championship, Blackmer placed second in the mile run with a time of 4:15.76, finishing less than half a second behind the event winner. He later added another runner-up finish in the 800-meter run, posting a 1:53.27 mark. The performance not only earned valuable team points but also set a new Kenyon program record, surpassing his previous best of 1:53.50.
Returning Statistical Leaders
On the sprint side, Kudzaishe Mhere leads the Owls with a time of 7.08 seconds in the 60 meters. Joshua Greville showcased remarkable versatility, owning four individual team-leading marks in the 200 meters (22.90), 400 meters (49.45), 1,000 meters (2:44.22) and 60-meter hurdles (9.00). Greville also posted the Owls' top score in the heptathlon, totaling 4,547 points. In the middle-distance events, Charlie Blackmer holds the program's best indoor marks in both the 800 meters (1:53.27) and mile (4:13.95). Distance runner Colt Murphy paces the longer events, posting times of 8:44.48 in the 3,000 meters and 15:07.68 in the 5,000 meters. In the field events, Zavier McGhee leads the Owls in the high jump with a mark of 1.85 meters, while Noah Bartlett tops the pole vault with a clearance of 3.80 meters. Kashi Tomic holds the team's top marks in both horizontal jumps, recording a 6.38-meter long jump and a 13.27-meter triple jump. Among the throwers, Graham Yeager leads Kenyon with distances of 12.30 meters in the shot put and 13.92 meters in the weight throw.
Schedule Overview
Outdoor season opener: Saturday, March 21 at Emory University.
Outdoor home meet: Duane Gomez Invitational, Saturday, April 18, 10:00 a.m.
Outdoor NCAC Championship: Friday and Saturday, May 1-2 at Kenyon.
How to Follow
Fans can follow Kenyon men's track & field throughout the season via the following links:
Live coverage (stats and video) - https://athletics.kenyon.edu/live
Twitter and Instagram - @KenyonSports
YouTube - @KenyonAthletics
