May 2, 2010

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IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Once wasn’t enough for the Wisconsin men’s track and field team Saturday at the Musco Twilight Invitational.

After winning the 4x100-meter relay as the sun went down, the Badgers kept shining as the lights came on at Iowa’s Cretzmeyer Track and finished their sweep of the meet’s relay titles by running away with the 4x400 title, as well.

The relay double highlighted a big night for the Badgers’ sprinters, which included three event wins for sophomore Kyle Jefferson.

He anchored the Badgers’ to a win in the 4x100, sprinted to a victory in the open 400 meters and then helped close the evening by contributing to UW’s 4x400 title.

Senior James Groce, who had the anchor carry on the 4x400, and freshman Gavin Robertson were part of both relay victories. Senior Nate Larkin led off the 4x100 team that ran a season-best time of 40.33 to take the top spot.

The winning 4x400 entry, which clocked in at a season-best 3:10.05, was led off by sophomore Grant Bughman.

Jefferson’s win the in the 400 meters came on the strength of an impressive close over the final 100 meters, when he charged to the front to break the tape and match his lifetime-best time of 46.93.

It was a strong performance for the Badgers in the hurdles, as well.

Larkin came back after his winning relay carry to take the top spot in the 110-meter hurdles by running a time of 14.23. Sophomore Adum Gross, who clocked the top prelims time, came home third in 14.57.

In the 400-meter hurdles, sophomore Pat Plank broke out in a big way by running a 52.83 that dropped more than a half-second off his personal-best time. The performance won Plank his heat and placed him fourth overall.

Bughman, coming off his lead leg on the Badgers’ winning 4x400 relay, also clocked a personal-best time of 53.26 to take seventh place.

The Badgers also picked up a pair of wins in the field.

Junior Robert Dehn posted a season-best mark of 225 feet, 3 inches to take the top spot in the javelin, while senior Rory Linder hit a season best of 167-8 to grab a win in the discus.

Senior Rayme Mackinson tied for third in the long jump with a season-best mark of 23-4 1/2, while redshirt freshman Paul Annear had a leap of 47-0 1/4 that earned him a runner-up finish in the triple jump.

The Badgers also had a number of athletes competing Saturday at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif. Complete results from that event will be posted on UWBadgers.com when they become available.

The Badgers’ regular season comes to an end next Saturday, May 8, with the Wisconsin Twilight Invitational at the McClimon Complex.