INDIANAPOLIS -- Bates senior captain Ross Tejeda found out Friday night he'll get one more chance to compete for the Bobcats, as he qualified for the 2026 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the 1,500 meters.

The 1,500-meter prelims at NCAAs are set for Thursday at 5:50 p.m. eastern time, with finals taking place Saturday at 2:35 p.m. eastern time in La Crosse, Wis. at Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex.

Tejeda (Milton, Mass.) is the 20th seed in the field of 22 athletes based on his career-best time of 3:48.13, achieved at Thursday's MIT Final Qualifier. He ranks second in Bates men's outdoor track and field history in the 1,500 meters. 

This is Tejeda's first chance to compete at the outdoor national championships. He has qualified three times for the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, earning first team All-America honors with the Distance Medley Relay Team in 2024 and achieving second team All-America status in the mile in 2025. Most recently, he helped the DMR team qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships this year but fell ill and could not compete as Bates placed 11th in the field.

Tejeda's name is already all over the Bates record books, both in indoor and outdoor events. The 2024 Distance Medley Relay team was the second-fastest ever at Bates with a time of 9:51.53. His career-best time of 1:51.04 in the outdoor 800 meters is fourth in Bates history. Meanwhile, his best indoor time in the 800 of 1:52.84 is the second-fastest ever run by a Bobcat.

Tejeda's career-best mile time of 4:06.73 is a Bates record and he is second only to Bates legend Ned Farrington '24 in the 1,500 meters.