Track Shows Well on Opening Days of the 2026 AAC Track Championships

Black Mountain, North Carolina- The Brenau track and field opened the 2026 Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a strong first full-day showing on Friday.

Standout Madison Kitson continued her strong season with wins in both the 400 meters and the long jump. In the 400, Kitson ran 57.08 to outpace Columbia International's Arion Jefferson by almost a second to earn her first title of the meet. In the long jump, she jumped 5.69 meters to secure her second title of the day. Teammate Kamryn Chambliss also had a solid showing in the 400 meters with a fourth place finish in 58.19 seconds. 

Junior Gladys Blanco Choque won her first AAC title with a first place finish in the 5000 meter racewalk. Blanco Choque outpaced the field by over three seconds to earn top honors in the event.

Senior Jasmine Johnson also added another top-five finish for Brenau with a fourth place finish in the 100 meters in 12.18 seconds.

Kitson, Chambliss and Johnson joined Kyla Laurent in the 4x100 relay team for a second place nod.   

Freshman Ja'Leyah Wongus also had an outstanding performance in the 400 meter hurdles with a second place finish in a time of 1:05.64. The Humble, Texas native missed winning the individual championship by only 0.35 seconds. 

The Golden Tigers had a very strong showing in the heptathlon as sophomores Jennaya Coucoules and Gabrielle Grant placed second and third respectively. Coucoules amassed a total of 3392 points, while Grant collected 3362 points in the event. Grant also added a 12th place finish in the javelin throw. 

The 4x800 squad of Woods, Averie Akin, Kendall Goetzman, and De'Nya Reynolds took fifth place with a time of 10:07.12.

Sophomore Tatyana Denis had a solid showing with a tie for third place in the high jump with a leap of 1.53 meters. Junior Jerrica Bryant also earned a third place finish in the shot put with a personal best throw of 12.77 meters. Sophomore Jasmine Ramsey also added a 14th place finish in the shot put with a hurl of 10.31 meters. 

The Golden Tigers secured another top-three finish as senior Emelia Askew captured third place in the pole vault. 

Other notable performances from the Golden Tigers include: 

Lanah Harbin, 20th place, 100 meters, 13.13;

Kyla Laurent- 13th place, 400 meters, 1:02.73; 

Jasmine Ramsey -17th place, hammer throw, 31.93 meters;

The squad continues competiton on Saturday as the squad pursues the 2026 AAC Outdoor Track and Field team title. Live results can be found here.