EMPORIA, Kan. – Montana State University Billings women's track & field athlete Rae Smart will continue her historic freshman campaign after qualifying for the 2026 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in both the shot put and the javelin, following the release of the national qualifiers on Tuesday afternoon.
 
Smart's national qualification marks a historic achievement for both her and the program. Smart becomes the eighth Yellowjacket track & field athlete, the third MSUB woman, and first freshman to ever qualify for the NCAA Championships. Smart will become the first Yellowjacket to compete at nationals since Beau Ackerman in 2021, and the first MSUB women since Della Lyle in 2016.
 
"Rae has done great this spring," said MSUB head coach Jonathan Woehl. "She immediately meshed with the team coming out of basketball season and right into track & field. She's continually improved her repertoire all year and has become consistent in all her throws, and we're excited for her to compete at nationals."
 
Smart has already earned a number of accolades in both events this season, having set MSUB's school records in both the shot put and javelin this season. Smart's best mark of 14.95m (49' 0.75") in shot put ranks second in the west region this season, and 11^th nationally, while her javelin mark of 45.77m (150' 2") ranks third in the west region, and 18^th best in the nation.
 
Smart finished in third place in both events last week at the 2026 GNAC Outdoor Championships, becoming just the third woman to medal in multiple events at the outdoor championship in program history, doing so for the first time since 2012.
 
The NCAA DII Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held from Thursday, May 21- Saturday, May 23 in Emporia, Kansas hosted at Welch Stadium on the campus of Emporia State University. Both of Smart's events are scheduled to take place on Saturday, with shot put scheduled for 11:30 AM MT (12:30 PM CT), and javelin set for 2 PM MT (3 PM CT). Links to follow Smart at the NCAA DII Outdoor Championships can be found on the women's track & field schedule page.