GREENVILLE, S.C. – With the indoor track and field season just over two weeks away, Conference Carolinas released its preseason poll with the Valkyries selected to finish second at season's end. Mount Olive placed first in the poll.
The conference also released its list of athletes to watch and three Valkyries earned the distinction: junior Jermyra Bethel, freshman Grace Davis and senior Bella Martin.
Bethel, a junior from Columbia, was a member of the first team all-conference 4x400 meter relay team last season. That quartet earned USTFCCCA all-region honors as well. She earned third team all-conference honors in the 400 meters.
Davis, a freshman from Greenville, enters her collegiate career with personal bests of 11.93 in the 100 meter dash, 24.79 in the 200 meter dash, and 56.58 in the 400 meters.
Martin, a senior from Irmo, was second team all-conference in the weight throw and won the event in 2024. She was a 2025 USTFCCCA all-region honoree in both the weight throw and shot put and earned the same honor the previous season in the weight throw.
The Trojans topped the poll with 196 points and all 14 available first-place votes. Converse ranked second with 180 points and the first-place vote from Mount Olive.
North Greenville, UNC Pembroke and Belmont Abbey round out the top five.
Lees-McRae ranked sixth, followed by Shorter and Barton tied for seventh place with 104 points.
King and Southern Wesleyan round out the top 10 followed by Emmanuel, Young Harris, Erskine, conference-newcomer Ferrum and Francis Marion.
Converse kicks off indoor season in Winston-Salem, North Carolina with the Winston-Salem College Kick-off on Saturday, Dec. 6.
2026 Conference Carolinas
Women's Indoor Track & Field Preseason Poll
|
School |
Total (First Place) |
| 1 |
Mount Olive |
196 (14) |
| 2 |
Converse |
180 (1) |
| 3 |
North Greenville |
162 |
| 4 |
UNC Pembroke |
155 |
| 5 |
Belmont Abbey |
148 |
| 6 |
Lees-McRae |
111 |
| T7 |
Shorter |
104 |
| T7 |
Barton |
104 |
| 9 |
King |
95 |
| 10 |
Southern Wesleyan |
86 |
| 11 |
Emmanuel |
55 |
| 12 |
Young Harris |
52 |
| 13 |
Erskine |
47 |
| 14 |
Ferrum |
44 |
| 15 |
Francis Marion |
36 |
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