DALLAS – A historic 2025-26 season defined the University of North Texas at Dallas track and field program. What capped the unprecedented success of UNT Dallas athletics was the men's track and field team qualifying for the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, also was a final tally on the board to several program firsts led by Head Coach Darvis "Doc" Patton in his first year at the helm for the Trailblazers as the cross country and track and field teams.
 
The men's track and field team competed in its first NAIA Championship, which was also the first UNTD athletic program to participate on the national stage. The men's 4x100m Relay and men's 4x400m Relay made historic debut at NAIA Championships in May. Jackson Danner, Ernest Ayanugo, Markevian White, and Ben Perin were part of the 4x100m relay, while Jahaden Jackson, Ayanugo, Devin Page, and Perin ran on the 4x400m relay.
 
The same quartet on the men's 4x100m relay captured history earlier in the spring with the program's first Red River Athletic Conference Event Championship. It was the first conference event to place gold on the men's side. Bryson Mcrae followed up on the second day with a first-place finish of his own with a record-setting mark in the Long Jump (7.24m). Overall, the men's team had historic results in the RRAC Championships with six all-conference results in events.  
 
On the women's track and field side, Ashli Barron won the 100m and 200m and was a top-three finisher in the MVP race among track events at the RRAC Championships. Besides her individual highlights to lead the Trailblazers, Naomi Peregrina had a second-place finish and the three relays all had top-three results to give the women's track and field team six all-conference results in events. Barron is the first women's track athlete to win a conference event title. Ryleah Fisher earned the first conference title for Hammer Throw in the 2023 Sooner Athletic Conference Championships for the women's track and field program.
 
Several individuals rewrote the men's and women's track and field record books this semester. This includes the indoor portion of the season, which was historic itself for the Trailblazers competing in four competitions (five on the men's side).
 
In cross country, the teams made the most of three competitions that saw the distance runners peak at the RRAC Championship. It was the best performance by the Trailblazers at a conference championship with both men's and women's teams coming in third place. Santos Vega led the way becoming the first men's cross country runner from UNTD with an all-conference finish (placed top 15 in standings). Peregrina and Madison Blanch were able to become the first women's country runners from UNTD with all-conference placements.
 
The success on the field extended beyond to the classroom as Devin Page earned NAIA Scholar-Athlete in the fall and spring semesters with a GPA above 3.5. Keilond Wright was also a NAIA Scholar-Athlete in the fall. The track and field team produced an astounding 15 student-athletes on the UNT Dallas Athletic Director's List, which requires a GPA of 3.0 or higher in that semester.
 
Coach Patton has built the framework to sustain a successful cross country and track and field program at UNT Dallas. This year was a taste of what the Trailblazers can do in a short amount of time and with great leadership. The UNT Dallas staff has been working hard to build the foundation and looks forward to having Trailblazers forge their own trail in the future.