CARMEL, Ind. – The Fightin' Engineers have been selected to win the Outdoor Track Championships in the HCAC Preseason Poll.
 
Rose-Hulman hauled in 79 points, while earning six first-place votes. They finished above Manchester, who placed second with 74 points and two first-place votes, and Hanover, who finished third in the poll with 64 points and the final first-place vote.
 
Rose-Hulman is coming off an HCAC Championship title in 2025, where they accumulated 196 team points. Manchester placed second at the HCAC Championships with 173 total points, while Hanover placed third overall with 117 points.
 
Head Coach Shane Mills returns for his second season with the program, where he has had an illustrious start to his career. Mills led both the men's and women's teams to HCAC Indoor Track Championship titles this season, giving him a total of five conference championships.
 
HCAC Championships Under Mills:

• 2025 Men's Indoor Track & Field
• 2025 Men's Outdoor Track & Field
• 2025 Women's Outdoor Track & Field
• 2026 Men's Indoor Track & Field
• 2026 Women's Indoor Track & Field

The Fightin' Engineers earned a total of two first-place finishes and five second-place finishes at last year's HCAC Championships. They return all but one player who recorded a top-two finish.
 
Senior Antoine Cooper had a sensational showing in last year's championships as he placed first overall in the discus with the third-best throw in school history at 167' 9.0". Cooper added a second-place finish in the shot put as well, with a throw of 47' 9.0".
 
Junior Kolton Nanko achieved a first-place finish in the pole vault with a jump of 15' 5.75".
 
Rose-Hulman's success would continue in their field events, with sophomore Jack Oker placing second in the discus with a throw of 141' 0.0".
 
In the track events, junior Logan Phillips posted a second-place finish in the 400m hurdles with a time of 56.59.
 
The relay team of senior Brady Socha and juniors Connor Bodie, Emre Gunay, and Andrew Shields added a second-place finish in the 4x400m relay, completing the race in 3:23.55.
 
The Fightin' Engineers will begin the season at home for the Early Bird Invitational. The meet will take place on Saturday, March 21, at 11 AM.
 
HCAC PRESEASON POLL RESULTS:

1. Rose-Hulman – 79 (6)
2. Manchester – 74 (2)
3. Hanover – 64 (1)
4. Mt. St. Joseph – 57
5. Franklin – 48
6. Anderson – 41
7. Transylvania – 34
8. Berea – 23
9. Bluffton – 18
10. Earlham – 12