COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The first day of the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships was full of excitement both in the field and on the track, and the performances put up by qualifying Badgers on Friday were no exception. Wisconsin started off the day with two top-10 rankings in the first day of heptathlon competition and ended with a sixth-place finish in the distance medley relay, earning its members first-team All-America honors.

The Wisconsin distance medley relay team put their athleticism to the test on Friday, facing some of the highest-ranked DMR teams in the nation. The squad, who previously ran a school-record time in February, ran the relay event in a time of 9 minutes, 33.27 seconds to earn first-team All-America honors. The team of Joe Hardy, Corbin Ellis, Eric Brown, and Oliver Hoare finished sixth overall and beat out Indiana, which finished seventh, the only other DMR team from the Big Ten Conference represented at the national meet.

Trent Nytes and Zach Lorbeck both put up solid performances in the first four events of the heptathlon that have them both sitting in top 10 after day one. Nytes currently holds the eighth spot with 3,281 points while teammate Lorbeck is close behind him in ninth place with 3,229 points.

Nytes started things off with a PR in the 60 meters, crossing the line in 7.11 seconds. The junior kept things going in the long jump with a mark of 23 feet, 2 3/4 inches. In the shot put, the Kaukauna, Wisconsin, native finished seventh overall with a toss of 44-3 1/2. In the final heptathlon event of the day, Nytes earned a third-place finish in the high jump with a clearance of 6-11, just a half inch shy of his personal besr.

Right from the get-go, Lorbeck got to work on the track, putting up a quick time in the 60 meters in 6.98 seconds. Next, he earned a mark of 22-6 1/2 in the long jump, and went on to place third in the shot put with a throw measuring 46-3 1/2. To cap off the first day of heptathlon competition, Lorbeck took sixth in the high jump with a clearance of 6-7 1/2.

Straight from the Track
UW Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Mick Byrne
On the DMR:
"The DMR at NCAAs is always a marquee event. When you put 12 teams on an indoor track you are going to get some fireworks. The lead-off leg is always crucial and it can get physical, like it did tonight. Joe ran 2:58.7 to hand off to Corbin Ellis in 10th. Ellis split (48.35) to move UW up to eighth. Eric Brown split 1:48.48 to keep the Badgers in 8th. Ollie Hoare ran another super anchor leg in 3:57.76 to move the Badgers into sixth to earn All-America honors."

On Trent Nytes and Zach Lorbeck:
"Both guys competed well all day. At the end of the first day, Trent sits in eighth and Zach is in ninth and both have a great shot at scoring for us."

Up Next:
The Badgers wrap up the final day of the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday with the conclusion of the heptathlon events starting at noon and will end with sophomore Ollie Hoare competing in the 3,000 meters at 6:10 p.m. (CT).
 

2018 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships
College Station, Texas
March 9, 2018
Results:
Distance Medley Relay
6. Hardy, Ellis, Brown, Hoare – 9:33.27

Heptathlon (through four events)
8. Trent Nytes - 3,281 points
9. Zach Lorbeck - 3,229 points

Heptathlon 60 Meters
6. Zach Lorbeck – 6.98
16. Trent Nytes – 7.11

Heptathlon Long Jump
12. Trent Nytes – 23-2 3/4 (7.05m)
14. Zach Lorbeck – 22-6 1/2 (6.87m)

Heptathlon Shot Put
3. Zach Lorbeck – 46-3 1/2 (14.11m)
7. Trent Nytes – 44-3 1/2 (13.50m)

Heptathlon High Jump
3. Trent Nytes – 6-11 (2.11m)
6. Zach Lorbeck – 6-7 1/2 (2.02m)