RIPON, Wis. – On the heels of the program's seventh consecutive Upper Midwest Athletic Conference championship last week, the Yellowjacket men took to the road this weekend, putting in one more effort to better the marks and improve their position with the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships just around the corner.
 
Friday, the multis took center stage on the first day of the Ripon NCAA Final Qualifier, with a pair of Yellowjacket men, fresh off being named All-UMAC First Team, competed in the heptathlon.
 
The first four events of the heptathlon took place Friday, and Yellowjackets Garrett Lynch (Portage, Wis./Portage) and Earl Foster (Forest Lake, Minn./Spectrum) both showed well, each posting multiple personal records, and both in the hunt for the championship when the events continue Saturday.
 
Through four events, Lynch currently sits in third place with 2,691 points, just three points out of second place. Foster, meanwhile, is sitting in fifth place with 2,423 points.
 
Lynch posted three second place finishes on day one. In a photo finish, Lynch was edged in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.23 seconds. He was also second in the shot put with a heave of 11.65 meters, and second in the high jump after clearing the bar at a height of 1.88 meters, a mark that matched the school record set by Terry Light 42 years ago, in 1971. Lynch finished fourth in the long jump, posting a mark of 6.10 meters.

Lynch set a personal record in the 60 meters, shaving .14 seconds off his previous best. He also established a new PR in the shot put by .65 meters and the high jump, adding .03 meters to his previous best.
 
Foster's best performance of the day came in the high jump, where he finished in a tie for third place with a mark 1.82 meters. He placed fourth in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.48 seconds, a new personal record. He had a fifth-place finish and established a new personal record in the shot put, as well, coming in with a mark of 9.94 meters, bettering his previous mark by 1.19 meters.
 
In the long jump, Foster placed fifth with a mark of 5.96 meters, a new personal record by .39 meters.
 
Foster, Lynch and a larger cast of Yellowjackets will compete Saturday on the second day of the Ripon NCAA Final Qualifier. Events will begin at 9:30 a.m.