University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
NCAA Outdoor Championships
Morton, Stephens, Perry take stage at NCAA Outdoor Championships
6/8/2026 10:17:00 AM | Track and Field
Panther trio set to compete in the decathlon, heptathlon in Oregon this week.
UNI track and field at 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships
- June 10-13, 2026
- Eugene, Ore. | Hayward Field
- WATCH (ESPN+)
- LIVE RESULTS
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The 2026 outdoor track and field season reaches its crescendo this week as three members of the UNI team head west to historic Hayward Field in Oregon for the 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Two-time First Team indoor All-American Carter Morton will compete in the ten-event decathlon in his final collegiate meet, while Katy Stephens and Joey Perry are set to take part in the seven-event heptathlon, becoming the first set of UNI women's teammates to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the same event in the same season.
Live coverage of the meet can be followed on ESPN+. The full schedule of events for all three athletes can be found below.
All three athletes qualified for Eugene by virtue of posting top-24 scores in all of Division I in their respective events throughout the outdoor season. While the multi-event competitions were not contested at the NCAA West Preliminary Meet in Fayetteville, Arkansas, all three athletes did compete in other individual events at the preliminary site. Perry placed 23rd in the women's 400-meter hurdles while setting a new UNI record in the opening heats, as well as participation in the high jump and 4x400-meter relay. Stephen also competed in the high jump and long jump, while Morton took part in the men's long jump.
Morton, a Jefferson, Iowa native, currently holds Northern Iowa's decathlon record with 7,882 points from last season competing unattached. With a season-best score of 7,782 points in his lone outdoor decathlon of the season at the Bryan Clay Invitational, Morton is coming off another strong outdoor campaign, cracking UNI's top-three all-time in the long jump at 25' 4", a mark he set to win the event at this year's Drake Relays.
The high jump and long jump are expected to be key events for the Panther redshirt senior in Oregon. At this year's Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Outdoor Championships, Morton was named the meet's most valuable men's athlete and most outstanding men's field athlete en route to helping the Panthers to a second-place team finish, winning the long jump title (25' 2 ½") with top five finishes as well in the javelin, pole vault and high jump. Morton will be seeded 12th in the 24-man field.
A Burlington, Iowa native, Stephens enters her first NCAA Outdoor Championships on the heels of MVC outdoor titles in both the javelin (147' 10") and high jump, the latter of which she tied UNI's outdoor school record with a 5' 10 ½" leap. Like Morton, Stephens set a season-best mark in the heptathlon with 5,728 points at the Bryan Clay Invitational, the second-highest score in the event in UNI history and best in the conference this year. Stephen's top events of the heptathlon are expected to include the high jump, long jump and javelin with her seeded 16th in the 24-woman competition.
Perry, a native of Winneconne, Wisconsin, will also make her NCAA Outdoor Championship debut this week following a breakout junior season that included her breaking the program record in the 400-meter hurdles twice and setting UNI's 4x400-meter relay record. Scoring a career-best 5,674 to win this year's Drake Relays heptathlon, a first in team history, Perry ranked second in the MVC behind her teammate in Stephens in the event, while also excelling in other field events. In early May, Perry and Stephens both became the second and third women's in Panther history to jump over 20 feet in the long jump in either indoor or outdoor competition. The winner of three MVC outdoor titles last month in the 400-meter hurdles and 4x400-meter relay, Perry currently ranks fourth all-time in UNI history in the heptathlon and is seeded 19th in the field.
CARTER MORTON - 2026 NCAA DECATHLON SCHEDULE
Wednesday, June 10
- 3 p.m. CT - 100m
- 3:40 p.m. CT - Long Jump
- 4:55 p.m. CT - Shot Put
- 6:10 p.m. CT - High Jump
- 9:43 p.m. CT - 400m
Thursday, June 11
- 12:45 p.m. CT - 110m Hurdles
- 1:35 p.m. CT - Discus
- 2:45 p.m. CT - Pole Vault
- 5:15 p.m. CT - Javelin
- 9:43 p.m. CT - 1,500m
KATY STEPHENS & JOEY PERRY - 2026 NCAA HEPTATHLON SCHEDULE
Friday, June 12
- 1:45 p.m. CT - 100m Hurdles
- 2:45 p.m. CT - High Jump
- 4:45 p.m. CT - Shot Put
- 8:43 p.m. CT - 200m
Saturday, June 13
- 4:30 p.m. CT - Long Jump
- 3:45 p.m. CT - Javelin
- 8:43 p.m. CT - 800m
UNI track and field action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Track and Field), X (@UNITrackFieldXC) and on Instagram (@uni_tf_xc). Schedules and rosters, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
