INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Francis Marion University graduate student Ryan Hunter was selected to compete at the 2026 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships on May 21-23 at Welch Stadium in Emporia, Kansas.

Hunter becomes the first-ever men's track & field athlete in program history to qualify for the Division II Championship event. Prior to joining the NCAA, Francis Marion sent five male student-athletes to the NAIA Track & Field National Championships. Hunter joins Emma Pidgeon (1996-97), who competed for the women's program, as the only two Patriots to qualify for the DII national meet.

Student-athletes qualified for the championships by reaching a provisional standard established for each event. For each individual event contested, the top 22 declared student-athletes were accepted into the competition, the top 16 declared relay teams, one per institution, were accepted, and for the heptathlon and decathlon the top 16 declared student-athletes were accepted into the competition.

Hunter will be making his debut at the NCAA Championships following another outstanding outdoor campaign. He ranks 17th on the national qualifying list with a school-record toss of 67.04 meters, which was set at the FMU Invitational Meet (April 10) on his first attempt. Hunter is the two-time reigning champion in the men's javelin after claiming the 2026 Conference Carolinas individual event win with a meet record distance of 66.61 meters on his final throw.

The national event features 22 entries in the javelin and is scheduled to begin on the final day of the NCAA Division II Championships, which is Saturday, May 23, at noon.

A product of Blythewood (S.C.) High School, Hunter earned a Bachelor of Science Business Administration degree in management (supply chain management) in 2025 and a Master of Business Administration in Business Administration this past weekend.