ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies opened competition at the 2026 Horizon League Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Friday with a strong start across multiple events, highlighted by a commanding performance from Kylei Anderson in the women's heptathlon.

After four events on day one of the heptathlon, Anderson sits in first place with 3,233 points. She claimed event victories in the 100m hurdles with a time of 13.78 seconds and the shot put with a mark of 12.11m. Anderson also earned runner-up finishes in both the high jump (1.60m) and 200m dash (25.75s) to take the overall lead heading into the final day of competition.

Oakland also saw success in the women's 1500m preliminaries, as Haileigh Bissett, Eliza Bush, and Grace Wessel all advanced to Sunday's finals. Bissett posted the fastest time of the trio at 4:38.24, followed by Bush at 4:40.31 and Wessel at 4:45.36.

In the distance events, Carter McCalister earned a fifth-place finish in the men's 10,000m with a time of 31:03.58.

The Golden Grizzlies also turned in strong performances in the throwing events. Blake Foster recorded a top-10 finish in the men's discus with a throw of 44.27m. On the women's side, Jamie Giese placed fourth in the discus at 39.39m, while Lainee Wagner finished eighth with a mark of 38.30m.

Closing out the evening, Amy Rowan placed ninth in the women's 10,000m, crossing the line in 37:12.47.

Day two of the Horizon League Outdoor Track and Field Championships begins Saturday, May 9, at 9 a.m.