SAINT PAUL, Minn. – After securing their third-consecutive and sixth overall Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) championship, the Yellowjacket men's cross country team had eight runners earn All-UMAC honors, as the league revealed its award winners in an announcement Tuesday.
 
Five Yellowjackets were slated to the All-UMAC First Team, which featured juniors Michael Butterfield (Bovey, Minn./Greenway), Aidan Doherty (Wild Rose, Wis./Wild Rose), Zach Reese (Zimmerman, Minn./Spectrum), Kieran Johnson (South Range, Wis./Northwestern), and senior David Collins (Ironwood, Mich./Luther L. Wright). The remaining three Yellowjackets who received All-UMAC Second Team citations were freshmen Ben Plackner (Bovey, Minn./Greenway), Tyler Smith (Ironwood, Mich./Ironwood), and Dylan Uitto (Ashland, Wis./Ashland). Johnson was also named the 'Jackets' representative on the UMAC Sportsmanship Team.
 
Additionally, head coach Glen Drexler was tabbed as the UMAC Coach of the Year.
 
The eight Yellowjackets represented half of the All-UMAC cross country list in 2023, as 16 total runners were selected throughout the conference.
 
Butterfield finished the circuit's championship race with a 25:45.4, earning the individual championship with nearly 30 seconds in between the next fastest runner. Doherty clocked a 26:13.8 on the 8k course at Winthrop Golf Course, while Reese tailed with a 26:15.8. Collins followed Reese with an 8k time of 26:27, while Johnson rounded the first team honorees with a race time of 27:12.4. The freshmen trio of Plackner, Smith and Uitto each finished the course with times of 27:31.7, 28:16.6, and 28:19.4, respectively.
 
All Yellowjacket runners picked up personal-bests on Saturday, finishing with a team score of 17, just two points shy of a perfect-15.
 
The Yellowjackets now prepare for the NCAA Division III North Regional Championships. Hosted by UW-Eau Claire, the race is scheduled for Nov. 11 at Whitetail Golf Course in Colfax, Wis.