WHITEWATER, Wis. – After what seems like an eternity, the Yellowjacket men's track and field team was finally able to get its outdoor season underway.
 
The first two events of the year, scheduled for Saturday, April 1 and Thursday, April 6, were both canceled due to winter failing to loosen its grip on portions of the Upper Midwest.

Several hours south of Superior, however, the snow cover was sparse, allowing the Yellowjackets and others to being their outdoor season, competing at the UW-Whitewater Rex Foster Twilight.
 
It's been over a month since some Yellowjackets faced outside competition, and they dove into a big meet with some stiff competition, coming home with nearly a dozen personal records and 10 finishes in the top 10 across the 19 events of the day.
 
In the field events, senior Nate Ohman (Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern) posted a pair of finishes in the top ten, placing sixth in the shot put with a mark of 12.93 meters and 10th in the discus with a mark of 37.22 meters.
 
Not to be outdone was Garrett Lynch (Portage, Wis./Portage). Fresh off his appearance in the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, Lynch also had a pair of top-10 finishes, placing seventh in the pole vault, clearing the bar at a height of 4.15 meters, a new outdoor personal record. He also set an all-time personal record in the high jump, finishing third overall with a height of 1.90 meters. Lynch also set a new personal record in the javelin.
 
Earl Foster (Forest Lake, Minn./Spectrum) had an eighth-place finish in the javelin, coming in with a heave of 42.45 meters.
 
In the track events, the sprinters showed some early speed, while the distance crew also flexed its muscles.
 
Michael Butterfield (Bovey, Minn./Greenway) earned a seventh-place finish in the 5,000 meters, finishing with a time of 16:44.16. Right on his heels was teammate Kieran Johnson (South Range, Wis./Northwestern), who finished eighth with a time of 16:56.39. In the 3,000-meter steeplechase, David Collins (Ironwood, Mich./Luther L. Wright) placed ninth with a time of 10:43.43, which was a new personal best.
 
The Yellowjackets also had two runners place in the top ten in the 200-meter dash. Ethan Westimayer (Laona, Wis./Laona) placed fifth with a mark of 22.74 seconds. Will Schorr (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) was right on his heels, placing ninth with a time of 23.06 seconds.
 
Other Yellowjackets earning personal records Friday were Ethan Bowe (Chetek, Wis./Chetek-Weyerhaeuser) (100-meter dash, 200-meter dash), Ethan Defoe (100-meter dash, 200-meter dash), Garrett Kroells (Green Isle, Minn./Sibley East) (200-meter dash) and Aidan Doherty (Wild Rose, Wis./Wild Rose) (1500 meters).
 
Next up for the Yellowjackets is the Saint Mary's Invitational in Winona, Minn. Saturday, April 15.