The 2025-26 campaign was a momentous one for the Hillsdale College track and field team, as the Chargers had its most national champions and best overall season in a decade.

Hillsdale got off to a great start in its indoor campaign, setting three new school records in its first weekend of competition and carrying that momentum through the entire campaign. The Chargers put on a great performance at the G-MAC Indoor Championships in late February, with the women taking a competitive runner-up finish behind host Ashland as a team with five champions.

Sophomore Baelyn Zitzmann broke her own school record to repeat as pentathlon champion with a score of 3,637 points for the Chargers, and senior Tara Townsend also repeated as G-MAC pole vault champion by winning a jump off at 4.03 meters. Sophomore Allison Kuzma was a double champion, repeating as the G-MAC Indoor 5,000m champion in 17:22.22 and also claiming the 3,000m run title in 9:42.82. Hillsdale's final title came from freshman phenom Anna Roessner, who broke the 60m dash school record in her first collegiate meet at the start of the season and took the G-MAC title in the event with a time of 7.38. Roessner also was named the G-MAC Indoor Freshman of the Year for her achievements, while Kuzma was named the G-MAC Indoor Track Athlete of the Year as well.

On the men's side, senior Ben Haas finished off a legendary career with a fourth straight G-MAC title in the weight throw with a mark of 22.91 meters, and also took the indoor shot put title as well with a throw of 17.77 meters to help the Chargers take fifth as a team. Haas was named the G-MAC Indoor Field Athlete of the Year as well.

Hillsdale also excelled at the national meet in March, earning five All-American honors. On the men's side, Haas won his second national championship in the weight throw and earned his fourth straight All-American honor in the event with a throw of 22.97 meters, breaking the school and G-MAC record in the process, while freshman phenom Dominic Scharer also excelled in the weight throw, with a mark of 21.55 meters to take third behind Haas and earn his first All-American honor.

For the women, sophomore Allison Kuzma shocked the field with a dominant performance in the 5K, beating the field by 18 seconds to win her first national title and Hillsdale's first women's national title since 2021 in a school and G-MAC record time of 15:58.57. She was joined on the podium by Townsend, who earned her second All-American honor and her first indoor honor in the pole vault with a clearance of 4.17 meters to place seventh in the nation, and by sophomore Amelia Lutz, Hillsdale's record-holder in the indoor and outdoor shot put, who claimed her first All-American honor with a throw of 16.01 meters to place fourth in the nation.

For their achievements indoors, both Haas and Kuzma were recognized by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Kuzma was named the Midwest Region Track Athlete of the Year, and Haas not only won the Regional Field Athlete of the Year honor but also was named the NCAA DII National Field Athlete of the Year for the indoor season, becoming just the third Charger and the first Hillsdale male athlete to win the award.

 As great as the indoor season was, the outdoor season was arguably even more impressive for the Chargers. Carrying momentum from its indoor performance, Hillsdale hit the ground running, breaking seven school records over the course of the season.

The Chargers hosted the 2026 G-MAC Outdoor Championships at the newly-dedicated Jim and Sallie McGinnis Track and Field Facility at the end of April, and Hillsdale's women put on an unbelievable performance, edging out defending champion Ashland to win Hillsdale's first outdoor team conference championship since 2022. The Chargers 219.5 points to take the crown were the most by a G-MAC champion since 2016. 

Hillsdale's women won eight outdoor G-MAC titles, headlined by Lutz, who took both the shot put (16.15 meters) and hammer throw (56.49 meters) crowns to earn G-MAC Field Athlete of the Meet honors. Kuzma also was a double champion again for Hillsdale, taking both the 5K (16:37.34) and 10K (34:59.58) titles, while Sofia Boonzaaijer claimed the discus crown (47.33 meters) on her way to co-Freshman of the Year honors.

Freshman Lilly Grubbs won the javelin (39.38 meters) to complete a sweep of the throws titles for the Charger women, Townsend repeated as pole vault champion (4.13 meters) and Zitzmann captured the heptathlon title (4,716 points) as well.

On the men's side, Haas continued a stellar campaign with two more G-MAC titles in the hammer throw (67.46 meters) and shot put (a school record 18.35 meters) to help Hillsdale jump up two spots from the previous year and take fifth as a team. Haas was named the G-MAC Outdoor Field Athlete of the Meet and he was joined at the top of the podium by teammate Thomas Flud, who won his second G-MAC title in the javelin with a throw of 56.70 meters as well.

Hillsdale wrapped up the campaign with a stellar showing at the NCAA DII Outdoor Championships in May at Emporia State University. The Charger women posted their best national meet finish since 2016, taking eighth as a team with four All-American finishes. The highlight was Kuzma, who added a second national title with a dominant victory in the 10K, beating the field by nearly 38 seconds to win in 33:43.47 and becoming just the fifth Chargers woman to win multiple national crowns in her career.

Lutz also impressed with a third-place finish in the shot put, with a throw of 15.85 meters, to earn a second All-American honor, while Townsend braved the elements to claim a third All-American honor in the pole vault with a clearance of 4.15 meters and a lifetime best finish of a tie for third. Boonzaaijer also snagged an All-American honor in her first collegiate season, placing sixth in the discus with a school-record throw of 49.44 meters. 

On the men's side, Haas closed out a storied career with two more All-American finishes, bringing his total over four years to eight. The senior took third in the hammer throw with a mark of 68.46 meters, and seventh in the shot put with a mark of 18.30 meters to earn All-American honors in the shot put for the first time.

Hillsdale's success in 2025-26 could be the start of something special. The Chargers have key contributors to replace in multi-time All-Americans and program legends like Haas and Townsend, but the vast majority of Hillsdale's point scorers, especially on the women's side, are underclassmen slated to return in 2026-27 for what could be another record-breaking and trophy-rich campaign.