LA CROSSE, Wis. / ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Yellowjacket men's track and field team had somewhat of a split squad Saturday. While the majority of the team was competing at the Holst Invitational, hosted by Concordia-St. Paul, two members of the Yellowjackets were in La Crosse, Wis. in the second day of the Phil Esten Challenge.
 
Friday, Garrett Lynch (Portage, Wis./Portage) and Earl Foster (Forest Lake, Minn./Spectrum) competed in the first five events of the decathlon, and when the dust settled Lynch sat seventh, while Foster was 17th. When all was said and done Saturday, both competitors moved up. Lynch went up one slot, and finished sixth overall, while Foster made a huge jump, moving up five spots to finish 12th.
 
Lynch and Foster were the only two competitors in the decathlon from outside the WIAC.
 
Both had a great showing in the first event of the day, the 110-meter hurdles. Lynch placed sixth with a time of 15.94 seconds. Not to be outdone, Foster was right behind Lynch, finishing seventh at 15.95 seconds. Foster had another big finish in the discus, placing sixth with a mark of 31.02 meters. Lynch was off the pace in this event, placing 16th with a mark of 26.23 meters.
 
Things moved to the pole vault where Lynch had his strongest showing of the weekend, finishing fourth at 4.21 meters. Foster ended the day 14th, clearing a height of 3.21 meters. In the final field event of the day, javelin, Foster posted his first top-five finish of the weekend, placing fifth with a heave of 42.39 meters. Lynch placed 16th with a mark of 35.68 meters.
 
In the final event of the weekend, the 1,500-meter run, Foster placed 15th with a time of 5:26.35, while Lynch finished 19th with a time of 5:51.87.
 
Lynch finished with 5,713 points, establishing a new personal record. Foster's 10-event total was 5,308 points, also a new personal record.
 
While Lynch and Foster were in La Crosse, the rest of the Yellowjackets were at St. Paul's Sea Foam Stadium for the Holst Invitational.
 
Steven Pearson (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) had a strong showing for the Yellowjackets, bringing in first place with a mark of 12.21 meters. The jump also set a new personal record. That wasn't Pearson's only top-ten finish on the day, as he also placed ninth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.46 seconds. That time was also a PR.
 
Also in the 100-meter dash, Will Schorr (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) had a strong showing, placing fourth with a time of 11.28 seconds. Right on Schorr's heels was Ethan Bowe (Chetek, Wis./Chetek-Weyerhaeuser), who placed 10th with a personal record time of 11.47 seconds.
 
In other track events, Michael Butterfield (Bovey, Minn./Greenway) placed third in the 3000-meter steeplechase, coming in with a time of 10:41.50. Iain Matheson (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) also had a top-five finish, placing fifth in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:06.68. Garrett Kroells (Green Isle, Minn./Sibley East) was right behind Matheson, finishing sixth with a time of 1:07.43.
 
In the grueling 5,000-meter run, Kieran Johnson (South Range, Wis./Northwestern) set a new personal record and placed sixth with a time of 16:52.42.
 
Also victorious on the track as the 4-x-100-meter relay team consisting of Ethan DeFoe (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior), Ethan Westimayer (Laona, Wis./Laona), Bowe and Schorr, who came in with a time of 45.50 seconds.
 
Senior Nate Ohman (Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern) had a pair of top-ten finishes in the throws. He set a new personal record and placed fourth in the shot put with a mark of 14.20 meters. He also placed eighth in the hammer throw with a heave of 42.62.
 
A pair of Yellowjackets placed in the top five in the long jump, as well. Schorr came in fourth with a mark of 5.97 meters. DeFoe was right behind him, placing fifth with a personal record mark of 5.59 meters, which set a personal record.
 
Other Yellowjackets who set personal records Saturday were Aidan Doherty (Wild Rose, Wis./Wild Rose) (800 meters), Kei Okamoto (Nagoya, Japan/Reitaku Mizunami) (10,000 meters) and Cameron Wegner (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) (shot put).
 
In all, the Yellowjackets set nine personal records in St. Paul Saturday.

Next up for the Yellowjackets is the most local race on the 2023 calendar. The Yellowjackets will compete at the Minnesota Duluth Bulldog Open Friday, April 28. Events will start at noon at Malosky Stadium on the UMD campus.