INDIANAPOLIS- With the national championship meet in the books, the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Outdoor Track & Field awards for the 2026 season were announced Thursday afternoon.
 
The top two place winners in each event have been recognized at the podium as part of the annual all-conference team from the G-MAC Championships on April 29- May 1., with Hillsdale serving as the host.
 
Awards for the 2026 season as a whole were voted on by the coaches.
 
The Great Midwest Women’s Coach of the Year is Hillsdale’s Jessica Bridenthal, who led her team to their second G-MAC outdoor title. Bridenthal coached ten all-conference honorees, four of which qualified for the national meet. The Ashland University graduate, also saw Allison Kuzma and Sofia Boonzaaijer earn major awards as the Track Athlete and Freshman of the Year, respectively. For Kuzma, the sophomore earned her second national championship title and first outdoor national title to cap off the 2026 season. She posted a dominant victory in the 10K, clocking a time of 33:43.47, nearly 38 seconds in front of the second place finisher. Her time ranks second all-time in G-MAC history. Boonzaaijer entered the collegiate scene with a first place finish in the discus at the conference championship. Earlier in the season, the freshman threw the third best mark in conference history at 49.09m. Her consistent performance earned her a spot on the national qualifying list, where she earned all-American status.
 
The top field athlete for the second year in a row is Ashland’s Molly Winner. One of the nation’s top throwers found herself in second place in both the shot put and hammer throw at the conference championship. She then followed up that with another second place finish at nationals in the hammer and a 7^th place finish in the shot put. Her podium finishes added two all-American honors to her already extensive resume.
 
Kayla Kephart of Ursuline is the Elite 26 award winner for academic excellence. Kephart is a junior majoring in Art Therapy and holds the highest cumulative GPA among her peers.
 
Cedarville was recognized as the Sportsmanship award winner for displaying consistent positive sportsmanship throughout the 2026 season.
 
A complete list of award winners can be found HERE.