SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (March 23, 2026) – Two members of the Western New England outdoor track & field team have picked up honors as Golden Bear Athletes of the Week after this weekend's performances at the J. Elmer Swanson Classic at Wesleyan University. 

Women's outdoor track & field sees Kayla Kyles earn her first honor of the season after an impressive outing this weekend. Kyles took sixth overall in the long jump event this weekend, coming in at 5.03m, her top jump of the 2026 season. In the 200-meter run, Kyles recorded a personal best time of 28.15 in the race. The Western New England sophomore finished out the spring classic in the 4x100 relay event, helping the Golden Bears take fifth place overall, coming in at 53.05. 

Men's outdoor track & field sophomore Alex Maurer continued his impressive start to the 2026 season, coming away with a pair of personal best times in the 100-meter and 200-meter events. In the 100-meter, Maurer took third place overall in the event with an 11.03 time to take bronze. The third-place finish was out of 53 total runners. In the 200-meter run, Maurer clocked in at 22.64, finishing 13^th overall for the Golden Bears out of 78 runners. The 13^th-place finish was the fastest time out of all student-athletes from Conference of New England schools. To round out the day, Maurer assisted the Golden Bears in the 4x400 relay race, seeing
the Golden Bears take third overall with a time of 3:32.00. 

Kyles, Maurer, and the Golden Bears will compete in a pair of events this coming weekend, taking on the Jonathan Tymann Invitational at Gordon College on Friday, March 27, as well as the Yellow Jacket Open at American International College on Saturday, March 28.