MEDFORD, MA (May 15, 2026) – Six individuals and the 4x100-meter relay will represent the Tufts University women's track & field team in nine events at the 2026 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships coming up May 21-23 in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Juniors
Emma Gall,
Simi Lawal and
Jackie Wells, and sophomores
Arielle Chechile,
Elysse Cumberland and
Lauren Zipoli all recorded individual marks that were among the nation's best this outdoor season. A total of 22 berths are granted into each individual event for the NCAA meet.
Several of Tufts' marks were among the very best in the nation. Chechile is the #1 seed in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 59.05 seconds run at the Pacific Coast Invitational in California.
Lawal is entered in two events as well with a pair of school-record times. Her 11.66 at the Pacific Coast Invitational is ranked fifth in the NCAA field. She also ran Tufts' best-ever time in the 200 meters, a 24.27 at the NESCAC Championships which makes her tied for the 15th seed at NCAA's.
Cumberland is another Jumbo who will see action in two events at Nationals, where she will be a top-five seed in the long jump and triple jump. Her l5.94m (19'6") long jump, which won the New England Division III title, is ranked fourth at NCAA's. In the triple, she has a 12.14m (39'10") season-best from the Tufts Spring Invitational that is seeded fifth in the national field.
Gall broke her own school record in the pole vault at the MIT Final Qualifier meet on Thursday. She would have earned a spot at NCAA's with either mark, and she qualifies 17th with her 3.89m (12'9") record.
Zipoli put together a score of 4755 points in the heptathlon at the Williams College F.I.R.E. Meet for the 15th-best mark in the nation and an NCAA berth for the multi-event. Her total is the second-best in Tufts history.
Wells is the 22nd and final qualifier in the javelin throw. She hit her 41.53m (136'3") qualifying distance at the Augustana Midwest Twilight Qualifier in Illinois on Wednesday. Tufts sophomore Harper Danford posted a qualifying mark during the outdoor season, but could not declare for NCAA's due to an injury. That opened the door for her teammate Wells.
The Jumbos recorded two strong qualifying times for the 4x100-meter relay this season, including a season-best 46.37 at the Amherst Spring Fling that ranks sixth nationally. Cumberland, sophomore
Makayla Moriarty, Chechile and Lawal ran the time. Tufts does not have to declare its 4x1 starters until Friday at the NCAA meet, and will have Zipoli and sophomore Cameron Staton, a relay alternate, as possibilities.
The Veteran's Memorial Field Sports Complex in La Crosse is the site of the 2026 NCAA DIII Outdoor Championships.
A full preview of the Tufts women at the NCAA Outdoor Championships will be posted on GoTuftsJumbos.com next week.
See the full list of 2026 NCAA Division III Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championship qualifiers
HERE (PDF).
--JUMBOS--
