Track & Field Opens Outdoor Season In Florida, North Carolina

Thursday, March 19

Charlotte, N.C.

All Day

Mercer University

(2) 49er Invitational

Track & Field Opens Outdoor Season In Florida, North Carolina

3/17/2026 10:34:00 AM | Track & Field

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

MACON – The Mercer track & field team will raise the veil on the outdoor portion of its 2026 schedule this weekend when the Bears divide their sloth and head to meets in both Florida and North Carolina.

The distance squad is slated to compete, Thursday-Saturday, at the Charlotte-hosted 49er Invitational, while the sprinters, jumpers and hurdlers will trek to Orlando, Fla., for the UCF-hosted Black & Gold Invitational on Friday and Saturday. Fans unable to attend one or both meets can still follow the action in progress via live results links provided by meet organizers.

MU's distance runners will see their first action since their mid-February competition at the Vanderbilt Music City Challenge. The Orange & Black posted a trio of top-15 finishes at that event, including an eighth-place tally in the 3000m Run by freshman Mary Grace Parker. Emma James turned in a 13^th-place finish in the 5000m Run at that event as well.

The sprinters, jumpers and hurdlers got their final outdoor tuneup at the USC Invite in Columbia, S.C., on February 21. Sophomore Akira Brown provided most of the highlights for the Bears on that trip, tallying a fifth-place performance in the 60m Dash. Four other Bears posted top-10 finishes in USC's Carolina Indoor Track & Field Complex as well.

Mercer be in action again next weekend, traveling to both the Mississippi State-hosted Alumni Bulldog Relays (sprinters/jumpers/hurdlers), as well as the Emory Thrills In The Hills event in Atlanta.