A May storm is changing the way Warhawk football fans will see Perkins Stadium as they enter on gameday.

A storm on May 17, knocked down 15 trees within the Perkins Stadium grounds. Eight of the trees that fell were located right past the entrance. The other seven trees were knocked down past the north end zone.

The eight trees that were knocked down towards the entrance have created new sightlines as fans enter the games. Now football fans will have a complete view of the field as they walk in. There is only one tree remaining on the grass hill. The UW-Whitewater grounds crew now likes to call this ‘Lone Tree Hill’.

The trees weren’t the only thing on campus that took on damage during the May storm. There was also flooding at the Williams Center due to backed up drainage pipes. At Fiskum Soccer Field, a couple of the field shelters were broken. Lastly, there were a couple railings at Perkins Stadium that were broken due to trees falling on them.

“We were thankful no one was hurt and there wasn’t more damage,”  grounds crew lead Mike Miller said.

The soccer shelters, railings and drainage pipes have all been fixed since the storm. The trees on the other hand have not been replaced. As of right now there are no plans to plant in new trees to replace the ones that have fallen.

“Initially we were (going to replace the trees), but as you walk up the hill to take your seat for the game we see a whole different perspective of the field,” Miller said.

The trees that fell were all blue spruce and were believed to be around 30 years old.

Although the plan is to let it be, if there is too much wind coming from the south end zone or if a coach asks for it, Miller and the rest of his crew will replant some evergreens on the hill.

It will be awhile before Warhawks fans will get to see the difference at Perkins Stadium, as UW-Whitewater does not have a home game until Oct. 2.