JACKSON, Miss. – The Millsaps men's and women's track and field programs are back and excited for the 2025 indoor and outdoor seasons. The Majors will be led by first - year head coach Brandon Beckett and assistant Derrick Jordan, who joined the program earlier this year.
Beckett joins the Millsaps staff after working the previous five years as the athletic director at Regents School of Oxford. He was also the cross country and track and field coach with the North Mississippi high school program since 2017, totaling 14 state championships. He helmed eight as a head coach and six more as the athletic director.
The women's team features 19 student-athletes, while the men's squad will be presenting 12 competitors.
On the women's side, junior Eleanor Scott looks to continue displaying her talent after appearing in seven meets in 2024.
She currently leads the program record book in the triple jump with a bound of 11.48 meters, which set last year at the 2024 Southern Athletic Association Outdoor Championships.
The Clinton, Miss., native was also named to the 2024 All-SAA Honorable Mention as a triple jumper.
Scott placed second in the high jump (1.50 meters) last season at the Belhaven Invitational on March 23. Her best of 1.55 meters is tied for fourth in program history. This year, Scott will look to break personal records.
Senior Sarah Strickland will be lacing up her shoes to compete in seven meets this season as well.
The Spanish Fort, Ala., product currently holds three spots in the program record book that include first place in the 1500 meters (5:02.82), second in the mile (5:44.04) and third in the 3000-meter steeplechase (12:36.80).
Based off her achievements and veteran role, the distance runner can play a huge factor on the team this season.
Classmate Fran Edwards will be returning to track after finishing strong in the 2024 Women's Cross Country Championships, where she placed 29th with a six-kilometer time of 25:25.2.
Edwards holds the fourth spot in the program record book in the 10,000 meters (42:38.13). On March 23, she finished first in the 5000 meters with a time of 20.32.04 at the Belhaven Invitational. Edwards can potentially have another breakout season as a distance runner.
Other top distance runners will include seniors Caroline Eschete, Mackenzie Farris, Tyler Hamby and Abigail Henry along with sophomore Elle Powers and first-year students Laken Day and Claudia Dempsey.
Sophomore Amelia Bohl and freshman Anaya Lewis (women's basketball) both will be throwing for the Majors. Freshman Molly Northam is slated to throw and clear the hurdles, while Hamby has javelin experience.
Sophomore Fiona Selders, another key aspect of the team, looks to continue setting the tone high from last season. The sprinter appeared in six meets and sits tied for fourth in the Millsaps women's 100-meter program record book with a time of 12.85.
Other sprinters include sophomore Hannah Brown, a third-place time holder in the Millsaps women's 100 meters (12.77) and freshman Merritt Johnson, who was a two-time MAIS All-State Runner at Petal High School.
A member of the Millsaps women's soccer program, freshman Suzanna Busbee will be displaying her talent on the women's track & field team as well. Both of her grandfathers ran track on the collegiate level.
Sophomores Hannah Keller (cheerleading) and Haylei Pineda (swimming & diving) also join the team.
On the men's side, senior Patch Heard will be returning to the group. During his junior campaign, Heard had a solid performance where he helped the Majors finish fourth in the men's 4x400 relay at the 2024 SAA meet (3:28.43).
He also holds a lifetime best of 1:59.70 in the 800 meters. The distance runner should have an exciting year and look to compete hard during the season.
Running behind Heard in the distance events will be freshman Phillip Antis, who finished 61st at the 2024 SAA Men's Cross Country Championship.
Also coming from the Millsaps cross country program will be classmate Aidan Brice.
Sophomore William Sullivan, a native of Brandon, Miss., will be joining Heard, Antis and Brice as a distance runner on the squad as well.
Graduate Bryan Sullivan, another contributor to the men's squad, will be throwing for the Majors alongside sophomores Carter Davis and freshman Dillion Duley.
Hailing in from the Millsaps men's soccer team, sophomore Kaleb Wilkins joins classmate and football wide receiver Damon Lee as sprinters. Other Millsaps football players joining the team are freshmen W.H. Carver and Justin Smith along with Zion Nixon.
The Majors will begin their season competing indoors, Feb. 14-15 at the Samford Bulldog Invite in Birmingham, Ala.
Millsaps will then travel to their first-ever SAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Centre College, Feb. 28 and March 1 in Danville, Ky.
Also on March 1, the team is planning to send competitors to Clinton, Miss., for the first outdoor event at the Mississippi College Spring Cleaning Classic.
March 14-15 the Majors will then travel to the Rhodes Invitational in Memphis, Tenn., before taking part in the Belhaven Invitational in Jackson on March 22.
Millsaps will later conclude the regular season at the Rhodes 7-Way Meet in Memphis, Tenn., on April 12.
The final scheduled event will be the 2025 SAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sewanee, Tenn. Sewanee will play host, April 25-26.
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the Millsaps College men's and women's track and field programs follow the Majors on X and Instagram, like Millsaps Majors Athletics on Facebook or visit gomajors.com.
Founded in Jackson, Mississippi in 1890, Millsaps College is a national liberal arts college dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry and free expression, the exploration of faith to inform vocation and the innovative shaping of the social, economic and cultural progress of our region. Consistently ranked as one of the best values in higher education, Millsaps has been praised by Colleges That Change Lives, The Princeton Review, Forbes Magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The John Templeton Foundation, and The Fiske Guide to Colleges.
