BATON ROUGE, La. — Florida A&M University's track and field program opened the 2026 SWAC Outdoor Championships with a statement, sitting at third in the women's standings and second in the men's after day one of competition.

Sophomore Arayana Ladson headlined the Rattlers' women's effort, winning the long jump with a leap of 6.29 meters (20 feet, 7.75 inches) — a personal best that ranks first among HBCU competitors in 2026 and 28th nationally at the Division I level. Ladson's victory, recorded with a wind reading of 1.7 meters per second, earned Florida A&M 10 points and signaled early what figures to be a dominant individual performance across the remainder of the championships.

Junior Zekira Snow added 2.5 points for the Rattlers with a sixth-place finish at 5.85 meters (19-2.50), while junior Jade-Ann Smith contributed in the field with a mark of 5.56 meters (18-3.00), also ranking among the top HBCU performances nationally in 2026.

On the men's side, senior Ezekiel Salama claimed the hammer throw title with a throw of 59.02 meters (193 feet, 7 inches), establishing himself as the top HBCU performer in the event this season. The victory earned Florida A&M 10 points and gave the men's squad an early anchor to build from heading into the meet's final day.

Sophomore Josiah Gaynor followed with a runner-up finish in the long jump, posting a personal-best mark of 7.75 meters (25 feet, 5.25 inches) that ranks second among HBCU competitors and 19th nationally in 2026. Gaynor's effort earned eight points and reinforced the Rattlers' depth across field events.

Florida A&M's women sit third in the team standings with 12.5 points, behind Southern University (37.5) and Bethune-Cookman (18). The men are second at 18 points, trailing Bethune-Cookman (21), with a men's projected total of 94.5 that ranks second in the SWAC.