RAPID CITY, S.D .--- The South Dakota School of Mines men's and women's track & field teams will kick off the outdoor season  this weekend as the Hardrockers are set to compete in the Yellow Jacket Spring Open hosted by Black Hills State in Spearfish, South Dakota.

The meet will start on Friday afternoon with the heptathlon and decathlon events and will continue Saturday morning with the rest of the meet to get underway at 12 p.m. with field events followed by running events at 2 p.m.

This season, the Hardrockers have five events on the schedule. After the BHSU meet, SD Mines will compete in the MSU-Billings Yellowjacket Invitation in Billings, Montana, March 30^th; followed by the CU Invitation hosted by University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado, April 5-6.; then host the Bauer Invitational at O'Harra Stadium on April 13; and  also  hold the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships in Rapid City April 26-28.

There is potential for the 'Rockers to travel to other locations for meets throughout the month of May before the NCAA Div. II Outdoor Championships May 23-25 in Kingsville, Texas.

There were three SD Mines competitors during the indoor season that consistently broke their personal-best records (PR's) and finished in the top of their respective events.

Jonathon Murray finished his indoor season ranked third in the RMAC for the 400-meter dash (48.62). Murray also competed in the 200 dash where he ranked eighth in the RMAC (22.05).

Andrew Ferris made his mark in the conference ranking seventh in the 800 run (1:51.75) during the indoor season.

Erica Keeble is also poised to have an impressive outdoor season. The sophomore was able to maintain the top spot in the RMAC for the women's pole vault and set a new conference record at the RMAC Indoor Championships after clearing a height of 4.05 meters and was the only SD Mines T&F student-athlete to advance to the NCAA Div. II Indoor Championships.

"We're looking forward to a strong outdoor season," said Hardrocker track and field head coach Steve Johnson. "The team is excited about the opportunity to also host the RMAC Outdoor Championships. Hopefully we can get some warm weather and start putting down some solid marks".