Morgantown, W. Va. - On day one of the 2026 Mountain East Conference (MEC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships, it was the Women Heptathlon leading the way for the Wheeling University Women's Outdoor Track & Field team. On Day two, that combined event success continued while the majority of the Cardinal field events took the competition field. It was a big day for the Cardinals, with an individual champion crowned and a record broken as the Cardinals sit ninth after two days of competition.
After starting the Heptathlon strong on Sunday, freshman Fenne Sienaert continued her success over the final three events on day two. She would set three PR's across the fianl three events, bringing her total PR's for the Heptathlon to eight, including her overall score in the event. She started the day finishing 3rd in the High Jump with a distance of 5.02 meters to add 565 points to her score. Her top day two finish would come in the Women's Javelin, where she threw a distance of 38.27 meters, taking the top spot by just over a meter. She rounded out the day in the 800-Meter Run, where she set a new PR with a time of 2:23.15 to finish second in the field. It was a close battle for the top spot in the event, but Sienaert would end up taking second with a combined score of 4563. It broke a record that had stood since the 2015 season, when former Cardinal Janey Hall scored 4280 points, as Sienaert wrote her name in program history.
Following Sienaert's success, Jenna Smith you make her event debut competing in the Women's Javelin. She would pass on the first three heights, entering at 2.85 meters and vaulting over the bar on the first try. As the bar moved to 3.00 meters, it took her three tries to get over the bar, and she was able to get to 3.15 meters. She would clear the bar on her second try, and was the only Pole Vaulter in the conference to clear the marl. She would go on to try 3.30 meters, but would end up just missing the mark. She would earn the first Individual Championship for the Women's Program at the event, winning the conference championship for the first time in her career. Rounding out the field events was the Women's High Jump, with Autumn King, Autumn Kerchner, and Fenne Sienaert competing. King would take the top spot, finishing 4th with a height of 1.60 meters, while Autumn Kerchner took 5th (1.64 M) and Sienaert took eighth (1.55 M) to round out the field.
The final two Cardinal events would come on the track, with two more PR's rounding out the day. Up first was the 800-Meter Run, with Jade Trowell competing in the second heat of the event. She would set a new PR with a time of 2:18.28, but would just miss out on qualifying for tomorrow's event finals. Rounding out the day was Gabby Baiano in the 3000 Meter Steeplechase in what was the final event of the day. She would end up taking 15th in the field, but set a PR with a time of 12:43.50 to round out the day.
The Wheeling University Women's Track & Field team returns to action on Tuesday, April 29th, for day three of the 2026 MEC Championships.
