Wiley, Voorhees capture Week 4 HBCUAC Men's Track and Field Awards

NEW ORLEANS - Wiley University hurdler Ronald Garrett Jr. wins Historically Black Colleges and Universities Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) Men's Track and Field Track Athlete of the Week. Distance runner Jai Harden earns Newcomer of the Week. Voorhees University jumper DeAndre Jones claims Field Athlete and Freshman of the Week.

Garrett punched his ticket to the 2026 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Men's Outdoor Track and Field National Championship finishing the 110-meter hurdles in 14.43 at the Texas State University Bobcat Invitational. It is the third straight year he has qualified. He finished ninth out of 27 athletes, which were mostly from National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Power Conference schools. His time ranks ninth in the nation. He was within a second of qualifying in the 400-meter hurdles at 54.35, finishing in the top 10.

Jones won the high jump at the University of West Georgia Legends Track Meet with a leap of 2.14 meters, which surpassed the 'A' qualifying standard. He leads the nation.

Harden ran 57.85 in the 400-meter hurdles. He ran 2:00.69 in the 800-meter run. This is Harden's second weekly honor.

Additional men's track and field weekly nominees: Caleb Benefield (Wiley), Denim Charles (Dillard), Shamael Durand-Pierre (Paul Quinn), A'Sah Glenn (Fisk), Thierry Harrison (Huston-Tillotson), Earl Hurd Jr. (Wiley), Emmanuel Idris (Huston-Tillotson), Chadrick Lee (Paul Quinn), Kai Mangrum (Fisk), Carey Owens (Stillman), Stanley Rhone (Dillard), Ziareon Skinner (Voorhees)

2026 HBCUAC Men's Track and Field Athletes of the Week

About the HBCU Athletic Conference
The HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) is the only HBCU conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The HBCUAC membership includes Dillard University (LA), Fisk University (TN), Huston-Tillotson University (TX), Oakwood University (AL), Paul Quinn College (TX), Philander Smith University (AR), Rust College (MS), Southern University at New Orleans (LA), Stillman College (AL), Talladega College (AL), Tougaloo College (MS), University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas), Voorhees University (SC), Wilberforce University (OH), and Wiley University (TX). HBCUAC sponsors championships in men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's track and field, women's volleyball, softball, and baseball. In 2022, the HBCUAC secured the largest media rights deal in conference and NAIA history, signing a multimillion-dollar deal with Urban Edge Network. On July 1, 2024, the conference rebranded from the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) to the HBCU Athletic Conference, marking a new era for the conference that embodies the makeup of its membership. For more information, visit hbcuac.org.