GORHAM, Maine – Fifth-year senior Zoe Barnes (New Gloucester, Maine/Gray-New Gloucester), senior Alexis Karantza (Westbrook, Maine), senior Riley Reitchel (Palermo, Maine/Erskine Academy) and senior Janiah Young (Perkinsville, Vt./Windsor) have been named captain for the University of Southern Maine Huskies' women's track & field team for the 2025-26 season.
 
Barnes, a two-time NCAA Division III National Championship qualifier and a 2025 Second Team All-American in the discus, returns for her final season with the Huskies. The program record holder in the indoor shot put with a mark of 13.14m, Barnes was named the Little East Conference Field Athlete of the Year last winter after winning the shot put title and placing second in the weight throw at the indoor conference championships. She also has three U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Region citations for the indoor shot put and another for the weight throw. Her outdoor season career highlights include three LEC Field Athlete of the Year awards, three LEC titles in each of the shot put and discus and three All-Region awards in each event. A Nursing major, Barnes was named a USTFCCCA All-Academic Athlete in 2024-25 and is a two-time William B. Wise Scholar-Athlete.
 
Karantza won individual conference titles in the indoor 600 meters and the outdoor 400-meter hurdles last year in addition to titles as part of the 4x400 relay team at both the indoor and outdoor championships. During the 2024-25 indoor season, Karantza was part of a 4x200 relay team that set a new school record with a time of 1:42.04. She also set a program record in the 500 meters with a time of 1:17.42. Her success continued into the outdoor season as she repeated as the conference champion in the 400-meter hurdles and earned Third Team All-LEC honors in the 400 meters. The Nursing major earned College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District honors and was named USTFCCCA All-Region in the 400-meter hurdles. She is also a two-time William B. Wise Scholar-Athlete.
 
Reitchel was named a First Team All-American last spring after placing fourth in the javelin at the NCAA Division III National Championships. The outdoor season also saw her win the LEC title and the DIII New England title in the javelin and claim USTFCCCA All-Region honors. Reitchel also earned Second Team All-LEC honors in the pole vault during both the indoor and outdoor seasons in 2024-25 and won the indoor title in the event in 2024. Academically, Reitchel is a two-time USTFCCCA All-Academic Athlete, a two-time CSC Academic All-District honoree and a two-time William B. Wise Scholar-Athlete. She is majoring in Linguistics.
 
Young has three All-LEC honors in the indoor 200 meters in her career with the title in 2024 and Second Team placements in 2023 and 2025. She also earned Second Team honors in the 55-meter dash and with the 4x200 relay team in 2024, and All-Rookie honors in the 60-meter dash, 200 meters and long jump in 2023. Young, Karantza, also ran on the record-breaking 4x200 relay team during the 2024-25 indoor season. Young has also had a decorated outdoor career with three individual LEC titles and another title as part of a 4x400 relay team. She was named the LEC Track Rookie of the Year in 2023 after winning conference titles in the 100 meters and 200 meters. Young is majoring in Public Health.
 
The Huskies start the indoor season this weekend with select athletes competing at the TRACK at New Balance Early Bird Invitational on Saturday in Boston. The Huskies will be looking to win their sixth consecutive LEC Indoor Championship this season.