The Milwaukee Panthers men’s track and field team competed in the final days of the Raleigh Relays in North Carolina and at Illinois State’s Joyce Morton-Kief Invitational in Illinois, according to a March 28 announcement.
These competitions are significant as they mark the beginning of the outdoor season for the Panthers, providing athletes with an opportunity to set early benchmarks. The team participates in both indoor and outdoor meets during their season, according to the official website.
At the Raleigh Relays, head coach Andrew Basler said, “After a strong first two days, our group kept that momentum up heading into today.” In the men’s long jump event, Anthony Buford placed fifth with a leap of 7.20 meters while Kyril Griffin also competed. Basler said Buford “showed continued consistency on his approach,” which he described as key for successful jumping. The team’s performance continued with three athletes achieving new personal records in the 800-meter dash: Karsten Grundahl (1:52.86), Wade Duffek (1:55.22), Harper Fahey (1:55.67), while Sam Schreiber finished at 1:58.64 despite having to hurdle a fallen competitor mid-race.
Basler noted that competing outdoors presents unique challenges for Midwest teams due to limited preparation time outside before facing elements like wind or cooler temperatures. He said, “This first outdoor weekend was a great opportunity to get outside and establish some benchmarks we will build upon throughout the outdoor season.” At Illinois State’s meet, Bishop Bufford took third place in triple jump with 13.69 meters and Olu Olu-Akintomide secured fifth at 12.65 meters.
In other events at Illinois State, Bradyn Thomas cleared 4.38 meters for fourth place in pole vault while Trevor Boyer placed seventh by clearing 4.23 meters; Boyer also finished third in his opening hurdles race with a time of 15.43 seconds over standard height hurdles—a promising start according to Basler who said Boyer “will be in the 14’s very soon.” Josh Cygan earned second place in discus throw with a toss just shy of his career best at 52.81 meters; Aiden Janke threw for over forty-two meters as well.
Freshman Matt Scardina started his outdoor sprinting campaign strongly despite cold conditions by running both the 100-meter dash (11.15) and the 200-meter dash (22.33). Basler commented on Scardina’s efforts saying temperatures were not ideal but praised him for taking on multiple races early this season.
The Milwaukee Panthers Men’s Track and Field Team is affiliated with University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where it contributes to campus athletic tradition and supports student-athletes balancing academics alongside NCAA Division I competition within Horizon League play according to its official website.
Looking ahead, Basler’s squad will travel next week to compete at UW-La Crosse’s Ashton May Invite held at Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex starting Saturday morning.
