From the Stanford Invitational to Florida Relays, the outdoor season began with a bang as major breakthroughs went down at tracks all over the country. Here are the performances that really caught our eye from the weekend:

Laura Thweatt Leads 8 Women to 10K Olympic Standard, Steph Bruce Makes Huge Comeback After 2 Babies

We knew this 10K was going to be fast from the gun as Laura Thweatt and Alphine Bolton established an early lead to pace the field under the Olympic standard of 32:15. And that’s just what they did as multi-talented Thweatt crossed the finish line in a massive personal best of 31:52, followed by Bolton in 31:54. Thweatt’s performance is just another breakthrough in a year that has included a 2:28 marathon debut, and two personal bests in the indoor 5K (15:35) and 3K (8:57). 



High Performance West’s Tara Welling (32:02), Beth Potter (32:03), Fionnuala McCormack (32:05), Harvard’s Courtney Smith (32:08), Tennessee’s Chelsea Blaase (32:08) and NAZ Elite’s Stephanie Bruce (32:14) all rounded out exciting finishes to notch Olympic standards. 

Bruce’s performance was particularly notable -- the mother of two had given birth to her second son, Hudson, just six months ago. Although her two children were born just 15 months apart from each other, that didn’t stop Bruce from making a jaw-dropping comeback on the track. With the help of teammate and pacer Rochelle Kanuho, Bruce ran her way to a personal best and Olympic standard Friday night in Stanford.

Mason Ferlic Runs Solo 8:33 Steeple at Battle of the Blues

In a dominant outdoor season debut, Michigan All-American Mason Ferlic took to the steeplechase barriers like a duck to water with a solo 8:33 victory at the Battle of the Blues. Fresh off an indoor season that included personal bests in the 3K, indoor 5K, and mile, Ferlic carried the momentum into his primary event with the No. 2 mark in the NCAA and a personal best by two seconds. 

@masonferlic in the lead #BattleOfTheBlues #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/eP5c5MKbWf

— Amanda Decker (@All_Decked_Out) April 2, 2016

8:33.95 3k steeple rust buster for @masonferlic, solo, 20 mph winds, winning by 25 sec. Solid. #GoBlue #fb

— Kevin Sullivan (@ksully330) April 2, 2016

Henry Wynne, Craig Engels Dip Under 3:40 at Florida Relays

As Virginia head coach Bryan Fetzer noted, “When you compete with confidence coupled with talent, that’s the combination you want,” and that’s exactly what Henry Wynne did in Gainesville, Florida, when he won the 1500m in a school record time of 3:38. The NCAA indoor champion ran his way to a personal best to win the Florida Relays' 1500m against Ole Miss’ Craig Engels, who also threw down a personal best time of 3:38.82 for second place. Those are the No. 1 and  2 1500m times in the NCAA, respectively. 

Henry Wynne (@HWynning) opens up the outdoor season with a #UVATFCC record 3:38.35 in #FLRelays16 men's 1,500m! pic.twitter.com/IYW5eUv4Qb

— Virginia T&F/CC (@UVA_Track) April 2, 2016

2 PRs in a Row For Harvard’s Paige Kouba 

Just a week after throwing down a massive 1500m personal best at Raleigh Relays, Harvard’s Paige Kouba continued to ride the PR train at the Stanford Invite with a steeplechase improvement of 25 seconds. Kouba ran 9:50 to claim the victory by less than a second over Oiselle professional Mel Lawrence Friday in Stanford. Kouba’s performance is the fastest steeplechase in the NCAA so far this season, and she and Lawrence both achieved the Olympic Trials standard.

Ian LaMere Runs D3 10K Record and Leads All NCAA Divisions 

In gutsy solo effort, Ian LaMere of Wisconsin-Platteville ran his way to a Division III 10K record of 28:38 at the Stanford Invitational. LaMere’s previous personal best was 29:45, but he leveraged the quick pace early and raced to victory Friday night. Not only does LaMere’s time solidify a massive personal best and a Division III record, but it also stands as the fastest 10K run across all NCAA Divisions at this point in the season. 

Kim Smith Returns After Foot Surgery, Giving Birth and Pulmonary Embolism

Three-time Olympian Kim Smith made her much-anticipated return to the track after a rollercoaster series of events that sidelined her for years. After running 15:32 for third in the 5K at the Stanford Invitational, the New Zealand athlete shared her appreciation for being back after enduring foot surgery, giving birth to her child, and surviving a pulmonary embolism -- all in the last two years. Smith’s performance at Stanford was her first track race since running the 2013 Stanford Invitational. 

Morolake Akinosun Becomes First Three-Time 100m Winner at Texas Relays

Texas All-American Morolake Akinosun defended her house Saturday at Texas Relays by winning the 100m dash in a world-leading time of 11.07. Her performance marks the third time she has won the event, making her the only woman to win three straight titles in the 100m at Texas Relays. Akinosun’s mark is just .03 seconds off her personal best of 11.04, which she ran at the NCAA Championship in 2014.  

Senior Morolake Akinosun (@BelieveMoe) won 3rd straight title in 100m at #TexasRelaysthe only woman to do so: https://t.co/hZOVTp579x

— Texas Exes (@TexasExes) April 4, 2016

Frosh Kunle Fasasi Breaks Through With NCAA-Leading 400m

19-year-old Kunle Fasasi burst onto the scene at the Florida Relays by winning the 400m in 45.43, a massive personal best in the event and a NCAA lead. In just his first season for the Gators, Fasasi has lowered his time from 47.12 to 46.60 to 45.76, and now to 45.43. The time currently stands at No. 2 in the world, just behind Pavel Masklak’s 45.33.

Freshman Kunle Fasasi (Florida) runs 45.43 (PB) NCAA Leader Men's 400m. 2016 Florida Relays

Top Men's 400 time... https://t.co/j1cwq6eWff

— Track N Field Junkie (@TnFjunkie) April 4, 2016