The Liberty League has announced its 2025-26 Men's Indoor Track & Field major awards as voted by the conference's head coaches following NCAA Championships.
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Nick Lyndaker, Senior, St. Lawrence University
St. Lawrence University senior Nick Lyndaker was named the Liberty League Track Performer of the Year for the second straight year. Lyndaker capped off his final indoor season with a second consecutive trip to the NCAA Indoor Championships, where he qualified to compete in the mile and 3,000-meter run. He earned First Team All-America honors in the mile with a fourth-place finish and a time of 4:14.54 and placed 20th in the 3,000 with a time of 8:44.15. This season, he broke St. Lawrence program records in both the mile (3:59.42) and 3,000 (8:07.21), entering the NCAA Championships as the second seed in the mile and 15th seed in the 3,000. A seven-time Liberty League Track Performer of the Week this season, Lyndaker also set a St. Lawrence program record in the 1,000 meters (2:26.72), ranking second nationally in the event. At the 2026 Liberty League Indoor Track & Field Championships, he won both the mile run (4:10.95) and 3,000 meters (8:17.63), earning Most Outstanding Track Performer of the Meet honors. He was also named USTFCCCA Division III Mideast Region Track Athlete of the Year for the second time since 2025.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Emmett Hansen, Sophomore, University of Rochester
University of Rochester sophomore Emmett Hansen was selected as the Liberty League Field Performer of the Year, marking the third time since 2023 that a Yellowjacket has earned the honor. Hansen concluded his sophomore indoor season with his first appearance at the NCAA Division III Indoor Championships, competing in the heptathlon and earning Second Team All-America honors with a 16th-place finish and a total of 4,683 points. He set personal bests in two events at nationals, posting 7.21 seconds in the 60-meter dash and 10.98 meters in the shot put. At the Liberty League Indoor Championships, Hansen won the heptathlon with 4,771 points and was named Field Performer of the Meet. He had qualified for nationals earlier in the season with a Liberty League association record score of 4,932 points at Ithaca’s Bomber Invitational in January, a mark that ranked him 17th nationally. Hansen also earned three Liberty League Field Performer of the Week selections this season.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Barack Abdallah, University of Rochester
University of Rochester first-year Barack Abdallah was tabbed the Liberty League Rookie of the Year, marking the first time since 2022-23 that a Yellowjacket first-year has earned the honor. Abdallah quickly emerged as the Yellowjackets’ top short sprinter this season, recording 10 top-three finishes on the year. At the Liberty League Championships, he set a new school record in the 60-meter dash with a time of 6.93 seconds (2nd), earning a silver medal and All-Liberty League Second Team honors. He also recorded a seventh-place showing in the 200-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 22.60 seconds. At the All-Atlantic Regional Championship, he was 17th in the 60 meters (7.00 seconds) and was part of Rochester’s seventh-place 4x200 relay (1:29.94).
COACHING STAFF OF THE YEAR: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
RPI head coach Colin Tory and his assistant coaches were recognized as the Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year after leading the Engineers to their third consecutive Liberty League indoor track and field title. It marks the first time in program history that the team has won three straight indoor championships. RPI’s depth was on full display at the conference championship as the team compiled 203 points over the two-day meet and 23 earned All-Liberty League honors. Among the 23, six earned first-team recognition with victories in the 200-meter dash, pole vault, and distance medley relay, six earned second-team honors, and 11 were honorable mention. A league-best five athletes qualified for the NCAA Division III Men’s Indoor Track & Field Championships, and all five garnered First Team All-America honors. Evan Lacey placed sixth in the mile with a time of 8:09.49, while Jack Czarnecki finished seventh in the mile at 4:15.91. Czarnecki also contributed to the Distance Medley Relay’s eighth-place finish along with teammates Alex Flynn, Danny Gall, and Dominic Pena; the quartet combined for a time of 9:57.15.
ALL-LIBERTY LEAGUE FIRST TEAM (Event Champions at Liberty League Championship)
60-Hurdles – Erik Marelli, St. Lawrence, 8.37
60-Dash – Sawyer Schlitt, RIT, 6.87
200-Dash – Ronen Stewart, RPI, 22.18
400 – Jack Defeo, RIT, 49.24
800 – John Elliot, RIT, 1:53.77
3,000 – Nick Lyndaker, St. Lawrence, 8:17.63 (MR)
5,000 – Patrick Russell, St. Lawrence, 14:58.05
Mile – Nick Lyndaker, St. Lawrence, 4:10.95
DMR – RPI (D. Gall, A. Flynn, D. Pena, J. Czarnecki), RPI, 10:15.09
4x400 Relay – RIT (J. Elliot, R. Senf, T. Goyette, J. Defeo), RIT, 3:16.60 (MR)
Pole Vault – Moss Dengler, RPI, 4.66m
Long Jump – Aadit Jain, Rochester, 7.09m
High Jump – Erich Brown, RIT, 1.95m
Triple Jump – Quinten Lewis, Ithaca, 14.59m
Shot Put – Ethan Beer, Rochester, 15.86m
Weight Throw – Armaan Butler, Rochester, 17.29m
Heptathlon – Emmett Hansen, Rochester, 4,771 points
(MR) = Meet Record
Note: The Liberty League also recognizes second-place finishes at the championship as All-Liberty League Second Team and third place garners All-Liberty League Honorable Mention
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