SPEARFISH, S.D. – The 2025-26 Black Hills State University men’s and women’s track & field season kicks-off on Friday, December 5, and Saturday, December 6, when they travel south to Chadron, Nebraska, for the Birds and the Bees Holiday Open. The Yellow Jackets return three all-conference indoor athletes on the men’s side and one on the women’s side as they look to build upon a seventh and 11th place finish at the league championships a year ago.

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO – DAY 1

Date/Time/Location: Friday, December 5 / 3 p.m. / Chadron, Neb. / Nelson Physical Activity Center

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO – DAY 2

Date/Time/Location: Saturday, December 6 / 9 a.m. / Chadron, Neb. / Nelson Physical Activity Center

2025-26 SCHEDULE

With the lone meet in the month of December, the Black Hills State track & field programs will begin the season at the Birds and the Bees Holiday Open hosted by Chadron State on December 5 and 6. Then following winter break the Yellow Jackets will return home and host the Dave Little Alumni Mile Open on January 17, before then traveling back to the Cornhusker State for the WSC NCAA Showdown in Wayne on January 24 and then the Don Holst Open in Chadron on January 31.

The action then shifts back to the Mount Rushmore State when the Green & Gold travels east river for the SDSU Indoor Classic in Brookings on February 13, before then returning to Spearfish to host the Myrle Hansen Open on February 20. Those with qualifying marks will then end the indoor portion of their season on February 27 and 28 at the RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships in Gunnison, Colorado, and then the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships will be hosted in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on March 13 and 14.

A week later in March, the outdoor schedule begins with student-athletes traveling to both the Chadron State Invitational and the Dr. Dan Caprioglio Invitational (CSU Pueblo) on March 20. The month then concludes back in Colorado at the Jack Christiansen Invitational on March 27.

Black Hills State is set to host the second annual Scott Walkinshaw Open on April 2, before then traveling to Des Moines, Iowa, to compete on the Blue Oval of Drake Stadium at the Jim Duncan Invitational. While some athletes will travel west to Azusa, California, and the Bryan Clay Invitational on April 16-18, others will compete at the Bauer Open hosted by South Dakota Mines on April 17.

The RMAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be hosted in Pueblo, Colorado, on April 24-26, and the year then ends in Emporia, Kansas, at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships on May 21-23.

Note that times and dates are subject to change, and that last chance meets have the opportunity to be added throughout the season.

MEN’S TRACK & FIELD STORYLINES

• The Yellow Jackets were picked to finish 11th in the RMAC Men’s Indoor Track & Field Preseason Coaches’ Poll on Thursday. A year ago, they finished tied for seventh in the conference meet with 23 points.
• Black Hills State returns three student-athletes who earned all-conference last season during the indoor conference championships, including Braden Anderson who was First Team All-RMAC in the 800m run, Chase Maher who was Second Team All-RMAC in the pole vault, and Trennan Pearson who was Second Team All-RMAC in high jump.
• Anderson enters the year holding the school record for the 800m run, clocking a time of 1:50.93 at the UND Tune-Up, and then he also ranks fifth in program history in the 600m run with a time of 1:22.77 in the 2023 BHSU Holiday Open.
• Maher enters the year ranking fifth in school history in the pole vault, clearing a mark of 4.77m (15’ 7.75”) at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships.
• The Yellow Jackets also return Landon Scalise who posted the sixth-fastest time in program history in the 60m dash, clocking a 7.05 second time at the 2024 Birds and the Bees Holiday Open.
• In the 400m dash, Flynn Johnston cracked the top-10 of the program’s best times, tying for ninth with a time of 50.50 seconds at the 2025 SDSU Indoor Classic.
• Jayden Curtis enters the season holding the fifth-fastest time in program history in the 60m hurdles, clocking a career-best time of 8.59 seconds at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships. He also is tied for eighth in program history in the long jump, recording a mark of 6.81m (22’ 4.25”) at the 2024 Birds and the Bees Holiday Open.
• Jaxon Straus returns having clocked the ninth-fastest time in program history in the 5,000m run a year ago, posting a time of 15:07.38 at the 2025 SDSU Indoor Classic.
• Bridger Anderson enters the 2025-26 season tied for tenth in program history in the long jump, recording a mark of 6.79m (22’ 3.5”) at the 2025 Eagle Last Chance.
• Also in the pole vault, McKalester Johns ranks tenth in school history having cleared a mark of 4.56m (14’ 11.5”) at the 2024 Birds and the Bees Holiday Open.
• Ryan Baker ranks ninth in program history in the weight throw, posting a mark of 16.94m (55’ 7”) at the 2025 Eagle Last Chance.
• Returning members of the 4x400 relay squad include Drew Lehman, Johnston, and Anderson, as they posted the second-fastest time in school history with a time of 3:20.13 at the 2025 Colorado Invitational.

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD STORYLINES

• The Yellow Jackets were picked to finish tenth in the RMAC Women’s Indoor Track & Field Preseason Coaches’ Poll on Thursday. A year ago, they finished 11th in the conference meet with 6.5 points.
• Black Hills State returns one student-athlete who earned all-conference last season during the indoor conference championships, as Erin Weibel is back after receiving Second Team All-RMAC honors in the pole vault.
• Weibel enters the 2025-26 season tied for fifth in program history in program history, having cleared 3.68m (12’ 0.75”) at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships.
• Also in the pole vault, Gretchen Adamski ranks tenth in program history having cleared 3.38m (11’ 1”) at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships.
• In the 60m dash, Saray a Afrank returns with the ninth-fastest time in program history, clocking an 8.08 at the 2025 Dave Little Alumni Mile. She is also the lone returning member of the 4x400 relay team that clocked a time of 4:01.71 at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships, the fifth-fastest time in school history.
• Emma Hofmeister cracked the top-10 of the 5,000m run during the 2024-25 season, posting the tenth-fastest time in school history with a time of 18:15.22 at the 2025 SDSU Indoor Classic.
• In the shot put, Hanah Sullivan ranks seventh in school history with a mark of 13.74m (45’ 1”) at the 2024 Dave Little Alumni Mile.
• In the pentathlon, Alivia Weathers ranks tenth in school history having accumulated 2,812 points in the event at the 2025 RMAC Indoor Track & Field Championships.