Hillsdale had an excellent start to the 2026 G-MAC Indoor Championships on Friday at the Niss Athletic Center in Ashland, Ohio, taking a narrow lead in the final day on Saturday after bringing home two titles on the first day.

Hillsdale currently sits in first place with 60 points, just ahead of defending champion and host Ashland's 56, with five of the 17 events completed.

For the third straight season, a Hillsdale athlete brought home the first individual title of the G-MAC Indoor Championships by claiming the pentathlon title. Sophomore Baelyn Zitzmann won a repeat crown in the event for the Chargers, shattering her own school record and posting the fifth-best mark in G-MAC history with a score of 3,637.  Zitzmann won two of the five events outright, taking first in the high jump (1.69 meters) and the 800m run (2:24.65) while running the fifth-fastest time in the 60m hurdles in Hillsdale history, 8.96, to place runner-up in that event as well. Zitzmann's mark also moves her up to 15th in NCAA DII in the event, a provisional qualifying time that gives the sophomore a real chance at reaching the NCAA DII Championships in March.

Zitzmann was pushed by her teammate, freshman Bristol Whitley, who finished fourth with a score of 3,412, the third-best pentathlon score in Hillsdale women's track and field history. Whitley finished runner-up in the high jump, long jump and 800m run to accumulate her impressive score, with her clearance of 1.66 meters in the high jump ranking eighth all-time in Hillsdale history. Sophomore Aubrie Wilson scored in the pentathlon as well with a seventh place finish and a score of 2,916.

Another big scoring moment for Hillsdale came in the 5,000m run, where the Chargers put together a 1-2 finish. Sophomore Allison Kuzma repeated as G-MAC 5,000m champion, coasting to the title in 17:22.22, while junior and teammate Eleanor Clark was close behind her to claim runner-up honors in 17:28.59. The duo combined to score 18 huge points for Hillsdale.

The Chargers also scored in the field. Hillsdale placed four in the weight throw, led by sophomore Olivia Newsome's fourth-place finish with a mark of 18.36 meters. Freshman Sofia Boonzaaijer took fifth and set a new NCAA DII provisional mark with a throw of 18.13 meters, currently ranking 20th in NCAA DII, while Tori Tyo took sixth with a mark of 18.07 meters and Regan Wight placed eighth with a mark of 17.20 meters.

Hillsdale also had two scoring finishes in the long jump. Freshman Adella Schmoll jumped 5.50 meters, the eighth best indoor long jump mark in Chargers history, to place fourth, and sophomore Katie Kennedy also scored with a seventh place finish and a mark of 5.28 meters.

The Chargers also got five points from its distance medley relay team, which placed fourth in a time of 12:07.20 that just missed the provisional qualifying mark.

Along with its strong work in finals on Friday, Hillsdale also did well in preliminary races to set itself up to contend on Saturday as well, advancing at least one runner to finals in all four sprint events. 

Sophomore Sarah Chappelle ran a new personal best time of 8.69 in the 60m hurdles to advance with the third seed to Saturday's final. Chappelle's time is the third-fastest 60m hurdle time in program history and a provisional mark that ranks 35th nationally.

In the sprints, both freshman Anna Roessner and senior Lucy Minning set new provisional marks and advanced to the finals in the 60 and 200m dashes. Roessner will be the second seed in the 60m dash after a prelim time of 7.43, and the third seed in the 200m dash after setting a new provisional mark of 24.16 in the event, the second fastest time in the event history at Hillsdale and tied for 17th in the nation. 

Minning, meanwhile, set season bests in the 60m dash (7.58) and the 200m dash (24.43) to make the finals as well. She's now tied for 40th in NCAA DII in the 60 and tied for 42nd in the 200m dash.

Last, but not least, senior Francesca Federici tied the 10th fastest time in the 400m dash in Hillsdale history with a 56.71 to make the finals in the 400m dash as well. 

The Chargers will have a tough fight to stay ahead of Ashland for the team title on Saturday, as the Eagles will bring a strong lineup in several events. But Hillsdale is set up to score points in just about every event as well, setting up for a dramatic final day as the Chargers try to bring home their first G-MAC indoor crown since 2021.