NEW ORLEANS, La. – For the third consecutive year, the University of the Cumberlands men's cross country and track & field program was named the USTFCCCA Jack Hazen NAIA Men's Program of the Year, recognizing the top overall program in the NAIA across cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field.
 
Cumberlands becomes just the second program in NAIA history to win the award in three consecutive seasons and is now tied for the most NAIA Men's Program of the Year honors all-time. The Patriots accumulated six points across the three championship seasons, the second-best score in program history behind only their 2024 campaign that earned five points.
 
The Patriots opened the year with one of the best performances in program history at the NAIA Cross Country National Championships, placing third with 160 points. The finish marked the third consecutive year that Cumberlands finished third nationally, tying the highest finish in program history. Freshmen Ishak Mekideche and Julius Makinen led the way in their national championship debuts, placing fifth and 10th, respectively, to earn All-America honors.
 
During the indoor season, Cumberlands earned its second consecutive NAIA Indoor National Runner-Up finish, scoring 52 points. Tavon Davis claimed the national title in the 600 meters, while Luca Madeo captured the national championship in the 5,000 meters. The Patriots added eight more All-America performances, including Tomas Mencel (3rd, 3,000m Race Walk), Dillan Melchiore (4th, 3,000m Race Walk), Mark Lawin (4th, Heptathlon), Ishak Mekideche (5th, Mile), Hauke Trost (6th, 1,000m), the 4x400-meter relay (6th), Ryan Ehrler (7th, 1,000m), Lucien Beardsley (7th, 3,000m Race Walk), and the Distance Medley Relay (7th).
 
The Patriots saved their best performance for the outdoor season, capturing the NAIA Outdoor National Championship with 79 points. Cumberlands claimed four national titles, the most of any team in the field, as Madeo defended his 10,000-meter title, Beardsley won the 5,000-meter racewalk, Davis captured the 400-meter crown, and the 4x100-meter relay of Jordan Afolayan, Willy Mabena, Edwin Van Wyk, and Aarontae Wesley earned the first 4x100 national championship in program history. The Patriots accumulated 25 All-America honors during the meet and won the team title by 29.8 points, the largest margin of victory at the NAIA Outdoor Championships since 2018.
 
The success of the Patriots was also recognized nationally on the coaching side as Bradley Sowder was named USTFCCCA NAIA Men's Outdoor National Coach of the Year and Derek White earned USTFCCCA NAIA Men's Outdoor National Assistant Coach of the Year honors.
 
The Jack Hazen Program of the Year Award is presented annually to the institution that achieves the most success across the cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field seasons. Programs receive points based on their finishes at each NAIA national championship, with the lowest combined point total earning the award.
 
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