As the sun rose over Bill Armstrong Stadium, the 8 a.m. start time for the 2026 women’s Little 500 qualifications didn’t prevent supporters of every team from being loud.
After the 2025 edition of qualifying boasted the largest field in the history of the women’s race, 2026 matched last season’s record-breaking total of 36 teams. However, only the fastest 33 teams could qualify for “The World's Greatest College Weekend.”
Each team had to complete four quarter-mile laps, with the riders executing one lap before passing the bike to a teammate or tagging their teammate on a secondary bike to begin the following lap.
The riders pulled off smooth bike exchanges during most of Saturday’s event.
If a team failed to execute a clean exchange — either by falling off the bike or completing it outside the zone — the team's qualifying attempt was stopped. Each team received a maximum of three attempts. If a team faulted three times, they would be disqualified.
Kappa Alpha Theta — the winners of the 2024 and 2025 editions of the women’s race — topped the timing sheets Saturday. Cheered on by their sorority sisters, junior Greta Heyl, plus seniors Bailey Cappella, Claire Tips and Greta Weeks, compiled a 2:43.883 finish.
With 10 race victories (1994, 1995, 2000, 2003, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2024 and 2025) and 36 top-10 finishes in 37 appearances, the experience paid off for Kappa Alpha Theta. The team finished almost four seconds in front of second-place Teter Cycling.
Seniors Leila Faraday, Seneca Simon and Lydia Casiano, plus sophomore Jenna Greenberg, secured Teter’s runner-up spot with a 2:47.546 time. The team has won the Little 500 four times (2005, 2010, 2011 and 2019) in 31 appearances and will look to improve on last year’s fourth-place finish.
Led by sophomore Libby Lewis — who became the first freshman rider in history to win the women’s time trials last season — Alpha Chi Omega finished in third place with a 2:47.911 time. Delta Gamma took first at the 2025 women’s Little 500 qualifications but fell to fourth place this year with a 2:48.347 mark, while Melanzana (2:50.107) rounded out the top five.
The Christian Student Fellowship women’s team was the biggest riser from last year’s qualifying. CSF previously qualified in 29th place and finished 19th in the 2025 race but jumped to sixth place in qualifications Saturday with a 2:50.141 mark.
In its first season competing in the Little 500, SALT Cycling qualified in 11th place with a time of 2:52.164.
Twenty of 36 teams crossed the finish line in under three minutes. Phi Gamma Nu (3:11.709), Alpha Xi Delta (3:26.958) and Mezcla (Did not qualify) finished 34th to 36th, respectively, eliminating them from the main race. Mezcla did not post a time after faulting on all three of its attempts.
Before the Little 500, the Indiana University Student Foundation organizes three other events. Known as “The Spring Series,” the women’s Individual Time Trials start this stretch of events April 1. Miss N Out on April 10 and the Team Pursuit on April 11 round the series. The winners the “Spring Series” will earn white jerseys to wear during this year’s race.
With qualifications complete, Kappa Alpha Theta will try to make history by recording its third consecutive victory at 4 p.m. April 24. Throughout the previous 37 editions of the women’s race, no team has completed the feat.
Final qualifications results:
1. Kappa Alpha Theta — 2:43.883
2. Teter — 2:47.546
3. Alpha Chi Omega — 2:47.911
4. Delta Gamma — 2:48.347
5. Melanzana Cycling — 2:50.107
6. CSF (W) — 2:50.141
7. Kappa Kappa Gamma — 2:50.512
8. RideOn — 2:50.530
9. Kappa Delta — 2:51.486
10. Novus (W) — 2:52.094
11. SALT Cycling — 2:52.164
12. Alpha Delta Pi — 2:52.196
13. Sigma Kappa — 2:52.851
14. SKI — 2:54.092
15. Phi Mu — 2:55.715
16. Chi Alpha (W) — 2:57.047
17. Pi Beta Phi — 2:57.404
18. Zeta Tau Alpha — 2:58.780
19. Delta Zeta — 2:59.215
20. CHAARG Cycling — 2:59.700
21. Godspeed (W) — 3:00.962
22. Chi Omega — 3:02.433
23. Alpha Omicron Pi — 3:05.239
24. Delta Phi Epsilon — 3:05.277
25. Alpha Gamma Delta — 3:05.644
26. Gamma Phi Beta — 3:05.860
27. Alpha Epsilon Phi — 3:07.675
28. Collins (W) — 3:08.414
29. Alpha Fasta Bika — 3:09.178
30. Theta Phi Alpha — 3:09.658
31 Bison Cycling — 3:10.106
32. Alpha Phi — 3:10.776
33. Sigma Delta Tau — 3:10.907
Editor’s note: Leila Faraday previously worked at the IDS.
