HACKENSACK, NJ– The wait is over for the Saint Peter's track and field program. The Peacocks open their 2025–26 season on Wednesday, December 3, with a dual meet at the Bogota Savings Bank Center against FDU. Saint Peter's returns a strong core of athletes and welcomes a group of promising newcomers ready to make an impact in conference competition.
Just two days later, the Peacocks travel to New York City for the NY Armory Invitational at the 168th Street Armory on Saturday, December 5.
Saint Peter's is projected to finish eighth in the MAAC men's standings and 10th in the women's standings. Rider was unanimously picked to win the men's title, while the Rider women's team is also projected to take the top spot.
Senior sprinter
Cashieve Blair headlines the men's squad. Last season, Blair competed in just five meets, securing a podium finish in every individual event he ran. His highlights include first-place finishes in the 500m at the NYC Gotham Cup, the 400m at the Yale Giegengack Invitational, and double gold at the Indoor MAAC Championships in the 60m and 200m. Blair etched himself even greater in the Saint Peter's program record book, ranking fourth in the 500m (1:04.40), second in the 400m (48.14), sixth in the 60m (6.79), and becoming the record holder in the 200m (21.36). After a standout indoor season, he was named MAAC Athlete of the Week (3/12/25).
The women's team is led by sophomore
Shania McDuffie and senior
Karilynn Jimenez. During her rookie season, McDuffie had multiple top-ten finishes, highlighted by a third-place finish in the 300 in her collegiate debut, and anchored Saint Peter's to a silver medal in the 4x200 at the Metropolitan Championships in 1:43.93. Jimenez added several top-ten performances of her own, including third in the 60m at the Knights Midweek Clash and a strong leadoff leg for the second-place 4x200 relay at Mets.
In the field events, senior
Amari Campbell returns following a competitive season that saw him earn two silver medals in the long jump– at the Knights Midweek Clash and the Metropolitan Championships– along with a gold-medal performance at the NYC Gotham Cup. His 7.23m jump stands as the second-longest mark in Saint Peter's history. Senior
Ciara Brown spearheads the throws group for the women after securing top-five finishes in the shot put at both the Gotham Cup and the Metropolitan Championships. Her 12.57m throw at Mets ranks among the top five marks in program history.
ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
FDU brings back a strong roster on both the men's and women's sides. Junior Nilaja Wiltshire leads the women's field group after an exceptional indoor season in which she was crowned the NEC Indoor Shot Put Champion, earned silver in the weight throw, captured shot put gold at the IC4A/ECAC Indoor Championships, and won the weight throw at the Metropolitan Championships. She also collected five NEC Field Athlete of the Week awards.
For the men, sophomores Ethan Ruffin and Jayden Ekoko are key returning contributors. Ruffin is the reigning NEC indoor high jump champion, while Ekoko won the triple jump at Mets, earned bronze in the triple jump at the NEC Indoor Championships, and picked up NEC Field Athlete and Rookie of the Week honors.
On the track, Xavier Hayletts earned All-East recognition after finishing fourth in the 60m at the IC4A/ECAC Championships and at last year's NEC Championships, Chase Lopez claimed bronze in the 800m. On the women's side, Nya Blades finished third in the 60m hurdles at Mets, and Tata Coulibaly secured silver in the 60mH at the NEC Indoor Championships before earning All-East honors in both the weight throw and 60mH at IC4A/ECACs.
LAST YEAR AT FDU
Saint Peter's delivered a series of strong performances in last year's matchup. In the men's long jump, Campbell led the Peacocks with a second-place finish and a personal best of 7.10m. On the women's side,
McKenzie Johnson paced the long jump group, placing sixth at 4.76m, with
Ana DeVries also finishing inside the top ten. The women's shot put saw an impressive collegiate debut from
Alyana Meador, who took fifth with a distance of 10.95m, while
Kennedy Vaughn followed closely in sixth at 10.84m.
On the track, Saint Peter's dominated the men's 60m with a sweep of the top five positions.
Delano Gooden crossed first in 6.84, followed by Blair in 6.85,
Omari Owens-Jones in 6.94, Campbell in 6.97, and
Ameen Zubair in 7.00. The women's 300m also featured multiple top-ten finishes for the Peacocks as McDuffie placed fifth in 44.72, with
Samyah Wilson eighth in 45.93 and
Shanelle Vilson tenth in 47.58.
For continuing coverage of Saint Peter's University Athletics, visit SaintPetersPeacocks.com and follow the Peacocks on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
