Thursday, May 14
Storrs, Conn.
10:00 AM
Creighton University
at
BiG EAST Outdoor Championships
Trinity Shadd-Ceres
Photo by: Clarus Multimedia Group
Shadd-Ceres Makes Program History With Winning Jump at BIG EAST Track Championships
5/16/2026 3:13:00 PM | Men's Cross Country / Track, Women's Cross Country / Track
Trinity Shadd-Ceres wins the long jump.
STORRS, Conn. -- Trinity Shadd-Ceres became the first individual champion at a BIG EAST Championship in Creighton Track history as the redshirt freshman won the long jump on Friday night at the BIG EAST Outdoor Track Championships, Presented by JEEP.Â
"Overall, a pretty good meet. We continue to strive towards raising the bar each year," said Creighton coach Chris Gannon. "The ladies performed especially well. Taylor (Rorick) became the first individual medalist in program history, placing fifth in the 10k and breaking the school record. The 4x8 group ran a school record, in a race that was crazy fast, and were able to bring home a medal."Â
Shadd-Ceres, who didn't start competing for the CU Track teams until May 2nd after finishing up the spring volleyball season, won a long jump competition for the third time in as many weeks as she jumped 6.36 meters (20' 10.5") on her second leap. The Ontario, Canada, native skipped the opportunity to take any of her final three jumps in the six-round competition, but it was still good enough to outdistance runner-up Connecticut's Brooklyn Taylor (6.26m) for the title.
Shadd-Ceres' distance was 1.5 inches (0.04 meters) shy of her season-best done last Friday in Lincoln, and the second-best distance by any student-athlete at the BIG EAST Championships since 2013.
Shadd-Ceres will be the lone Bluejay Track student-athlete to continue on to the postseason, as she'll compete at the NCAA West Region First Round in Fayetteville, Ark., on May 27-30.
"Trinity winning the long jump is a pretty big milestone for the program," noted Gannon. "The consistency of her performance from this week back to last week also generates some excitement for NCAAs. We will have a little time to get some technical work done with Trinity before NCAA First Round."Â
The Creighton women started strong on Thursday night, led by a record-breaking performance from Taylor Rorick in the 10,000-meter race. The junior placed fifth in a time of 36:47.48 to smash her previous best of 37:38.20Â by more than 50 seconds and earn the Bluejays four points in the standings. Rorick's time also erased Caroline Rupper's program-record in the 10K of 37:17.19 that was set in 2023 at the Drake Relays.
Creighton's 4x800 relay team placed fourth with a time of 8:47.54 by the quartet of Anika Nettekoven, Reyna Heisserer, Carly Manchester and Alexis Huddin. That, too, was a school-record, trimming nearly 30 seconds from the previous best of 9:16.88 done two years ago at the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships. The fourth place performance was four spots better than CU's finish in the same event each of the previous league championship meets.
Freshman Sarah Vaske finished 12th in the 5,000 meters with a time of 18:14.47 and classmate Sophia Redler took 21st in the 800 with a time of 2:20.66 in her BIG EAST Outdoor Championships debut.
Sophia Valentine also competed in the javelin but did not record a distance as she fouled on each of her three throws.
Â
On the men's side, Jacob Ludwick shook off a recent injury to earn a fourth-place showing in the javelin. The toss of 61.81 meters (202' 9") was a season-best for the senior.
Creighton's 4x800 relay squad placed sixth in a time of 7:38.92. That quartet featured Ryan Hendrickson, Kyle Nelson, Michael Bianco and Tommy Murray.
Jake Ziebarth earned CU some points in the 800 meters. He ran a time of 1:50.60 to qualify for the finals, then surpassed that with a 1:50.22 clocking in the final for a seventh-place finish.
A pair of Bluejays raced in the 400-meter hurdles. Freshman Gabe Hamilton qualified for the finals by taking fifth in the prelims in 53.99. He ran a program-record time of 53:50 in the finals to place seventh. Teammate Logan Piper circled the track in 54.24 and was ninth in the preliminary round, one spot shy of qualifying for the final, even though his time was more than two seconds better than last May.
Â
Three Bluejay men raced in the 10,000 meters on Thursday evening. Noah Jodon took 10th in a CU-record time of 30:38.19 that was 19 seconds faster than Ryan Montera's previous mark. Teammate Eli Moore (31:18.72) placed 12th and Andrew Sauer (31:30.42) finished 13th.
Additionally, CU junior Dominic Ricci finished 10th in the steeplechase with a time of 9:43.50.
"Noah broke the school record in the men's 10k and Gabe broke his school record in the 400 hurdles, placing seventh," added Gannon. "Jake (Ziebarth) placed in a very talented 800. And Ludwick threw a season best to place fourth in the javelin with a torn ligament in his knee when a few weeks ago we thought his season might be over. The 4x8 squad was able bring home a medal as well.
"It's pretty special to look at how far the program has come in just a few years. We for sure had some bigger goals this year but had some key people out with injuries. We lose a lot of senior talent but are also really excited for the trajectory of the program. For most of the crew it will be time to get healthy and reset."
Connecticut won both the men's and women's team titles. It was UConn's sixth consecutive conference title and 10th overall on the men's side, while the women have won five crowns in a row and seven in program history. DePaul finished as runner-up in both the men's and women's standings. The Creighton men and women were each ninth in their respective standings, though the 19 points on the women's side far exceeded the program's previous totals in 2024 (1) and 2025 (2).
UConn's Medwin Odamtten was named the men's BIG EAST Most Outstanding Track Performer after setting the BIG EAST record in the men's 100-meter dash with a time of 10.22 in the preliminary round and winning the event in 10.53. Odamtten also claimed gold in the 200-meter dash (20.96) and helped UConn win the 4x100-meter relay.
Â
UConn's Joshua Mooney earned men's Most Outstanding Field Performer honors after winning the pole vault with a mark of 4.70 meters, the 110-meter hurdles in 14.00, and the javelin with a throw of 65.54 meters. He was also named the meet's High Point Performer with 28 points.
On the women's side, Providence's Maeve O'Neill was named Most Outstanding Track Performer after winning the 800-meter run in a meet-record time of 2:02.05 and helping Providence claim gold in the 4x800-meter relay (8:30.87).
St. John's Jamora Alves earned women's Most Outstanding Field Performer honors after winning the discus with a throw of 55.89 meters and the shot put with a mark of 15.46 meters.
Â
DePaul's Sade Miller was named the women's High Point Performer after totaling 22.5 points with first-place finishes in the 100-meter dash (11.55) and 200-meter dash (23.58), while also helping DePaul win the 4x100-meter relay.
The Huskies' coaching staff won BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year honors for both the men's and women's teams following the completion of the three-day meet.
Â
Most Outstanding Track Performers
Men: Medwin Odamtten, UConn
Women: Maeve O'Neill, Providence
Most Outstanding Field Performers
Men: Joshua Mooney, UConn
Women: Jamora Alves, St. John's
High Point Performers
Men: Joshua Mooney, UConn – 28 points
Women: Sade Miller, DePaul – 22.5 points
Coaching Staff of the Year
Men's: Connecticut
Women's: Connecticut
Â
Women's Results (22 events scored)
1. UConn – 212
2. DePaul - 184
3. St. John's - 127
4. Villanova – 91
5. Providence - 78
6. Georgetown - 65
7. Marquette - 46
8. Butler - 24
9. Creighton – 19
10. Xavier - 8
Men's Results (22 events scored)
1. UConn – 273.5
2. DePaul - 134
3. Georgetown - 97
4. Villanova - 91
5. Marquette – 89.5
6. Butler - 54
7. Providence - 54
8. Xavier - 14
9. Creighton - 12
Â
"Overall, a pretty good meet. We continue to strive towards raising the bar each year," said Creighton coach Chris Gannon. "The ladies performed especially well. Taylor (Rorick) became the first individual medalist in program history, placing fifth in the 10k and breaking the school record. The 4x8 group ran a school record, in a race that was crazy fast, and were able to bring home a medal."Â
Shadd-Ceres, who didn't start competing for the CU Track teams until May 2nd after finishing up the spring volleyball season, won a long jump competition for the third time in as many weeks as she jumped 6.36 meters (20' 10.5") on her second leap. The Ontario, Canada, native skipped the opportunity to take any of her final three jumps in the six-round competition, but it was still good enough to outdistance runner-up Connecticut's Brooklyn Taylor (6.26m) for the title.
Shadd-Ceres' distance was 1.5 inches (0.04 meters) shy of her season-best done last Friday in Lincoln, and the second-best distance by any student-athlete at the BIG EAST Championships since 2013.
Shadd-Ceres will be the lone Bluejay Track student-athlete to continue on to the postseason, as she'll compete at the NCAA West Region First Round in Fayetteville, Ark., on May 27-30.
"Trinity winning the long jump is a pretty big milestone for the program," noted Gannon. "The consistency of her performance from this week back to last week also generates some excitement for NCAAs. We will have a little time to get some technical work done with Trinity before NCAA First Round."Â
The Creighton women started strong on Thursday night, led by a record-breaking performance from Taylor Rorick in the 10,000-meter race. The junior placed fifth in a time of 36:47.48 to smash her previous best of 37:38.20Â by more than 50 seconds and earn the Bluejays four points in the standings. Rorick's time also erased Caroline Rupper's program-record in the 10K of 37:17.19 that was set in 2023 at the Drake Relays.
Creighton's 4x800 relay team placed fourth with a time of 8:47.54 by the quartet of Anika Nettekoven, Reyna Heisserer, Carly Manchester and Alexis Huddin. That, too, was a school-record, trimming nearly 30 seconds from the previous best of 9:16.88 done two years ago at the BIG EAST Outdoor Championships. The fourth place performance was four spots better than CU's finish in the same event each of the previous league championship meets.
Freshman Sarah Vaske finished 12th in the 5,000 meters with a time of 18:14.47 and classmate Sophia Redler took 21st in the 800 with a time of 2:20.66 in her BIG EAST Outdoor Championships debut.
Sophia Valentine also competed in the javelin but did not record a distance as she fouled on each of her three throws.
Â
Creighton's 4x800 relay squad placed sixth in a time of 7:38.92. That quartet featured Ryan Hendrickson, Kyle Nelson, Michael Bianco and Tommy Murray.
Jake Ziebarth earned CU some points in the 800 meters. He ran a time of 1:50.60 to qualify for the finals, then surpassed that with a 1:50.22 clocking in the final for a seventh-place finish.
A pair of Bluejays raced in the 400-meter hurdles. Freshman Gabe Hamilton qualified for the finals by taking fifth in the prelims in 53.99. He ran a program-record time of 53:50 in the finals to place seventh. Teammate Logan Piper circled the track in 54.24 and was ninth in the preliminary round, one spot shy of qualifying for the final, even though his time was more than two seconds better than last May.
Â
Additionally, CU junior Dominic Ricci finished 10th in the steeplechase with a time of 9:43.50.
"Noah broke the school record in the men's 10k and Gabe broke his school record in the 400 hurdles, placing seventh," added Gannon. "Jake (Ziebarth) placed in a very talented 800. And Ludwick threw a season best to place fourth in the javelin with a torn ligament in his knee when a few weeks ago we thought his season might be over. The 4x8 squad was able bring home a medal as well.
"It's pretty special to look at how far the program has come in just a few years. We for sure had some bigger goals this year but had some key people out with injuries. We lose a lot of senior talent but are also really excited for the trajectory of the program. For most of the crew it will be time to get healthy and reset."
Connecticut won both the men's and women's team titles. It was UConn's sixth consecutive conference title and 10th overall on the men's side, while the women have won five crowns in a row and seven in program history. DePaul finished as runner-up in both the men's and women's standings. The Creighton men and women were each ninth in their respective standings, though the 19 points on the women's side far exceeded the program's previous totals in 2024 (1) and 2025 (2).
UConn's Medwin Odamtten was named the men's BIG EAST Most Outstanding Track Performer after setting the BIG EAST record in the men's 100-meter dash with a time of 10.22 in the preliminary round and winning the event in 10.53. Odamtten also claimed gold in the 200-meter dash (20.96) and helped UConn win the 4x100-meter relay.
Â
UConn's Joshua Mooney earned men's Most Outstanding Field Performer honors after winning the pole vault with a mark of 4.70 meters, the 110-meter hurdles in 14.00, and the javelin with a throw of 65.54 meters. He was also named the meet's High Point Performer with 28 points.
On the women's side, Providence's Maeve O'Neill was named Most Outstanding Track Performer after winning the 800-meter run in a meet-record time of 2:02.05 and helping Providence claim gold in the 4x800-meter relay (8:30.87).
St. John's Jamora Alves earned women's Most Outstanding Field Performer honors after winning the discus with a throw of 55.89 meters and the shot put with a mark of 15.46 meters.
Â
DePaul's Sade Miller was named the women's High Point Performer after totaling 22.5 points with first-place finishes in the 100-meter dash (11.55) and 200-meter dash (23.58), while also helping DePaul win the 4x100-meter relay.
The Huskies' coaching staff won BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year honors for both the men's and women's teams following the completion of the three-day meet.
Â
Most Outstanding Track Performers
Men: Medwin Odamtten, UConn
Women: Maeve O'Neill, Providence
Most Outstanding Field Performers
Men: Joshua Mooney, UConn
Women: Jamora Alves, St. John's
High Point Performers
Men: Joshua Mooney, UConn – 28 points
Women: Sade Miller, DePaul – 22.5 points
Coaching Staff of the Year
Men's: Connecticut
Women's: Connecticut
Â
Women's Results (22 events scored)
1. UConn – 212
2. DePaul - 184
3. St. John's - 127
4. Villanova – 91
5. Providence - 78
6. Georgetown - 65
7. Marquette - 46
8. Butler - 24
9. Creighton – 19
10. Xavier - 8
Men's Results (22 events scored)
1. UConn – 273.5
2. DePaul - 134
3. Georgetown - 97
4. Villanova - 91
5. Marquette – 89.5
6. Butler - 54
7. Providence - 54
8. Xavier - 14
9. Creighton - 12
Â
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Women's Cross Country / Track
/ Men's Cross Country / Track
Creighton Cross Country Media Availability - 10/29/25
Wednesday, October 29
Creighton Media Availability Cross Country - 10/21/25
Tuesday, October 21
Creighton Media Availability 10/15/25 - Cross Country
Wednesday, October 15
Creighton Cross Country Media Availability - 10/8/25
Wednesday, October 08
