Hacker leads Badgers in last day of competition in Iowa

Saturday, January 19

Iowa City, IA

ALL DAY

Wisconsin Badgers

Larry Wieczorek Invitational

Hacker leads Badgers in last day of competition in Iowa

January 19, 2019 | Men's Track & Field

Redshirt junior earns NCAA top-10 time in the mile

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Badgers finished off the second day of the Larry Wieczorek Invitational on a high note, with redshirt junior Olin Hacker leading the way for Wisconsin after earning an NCAA top-ten time in the mile.

Hacker kicked off his indoor track campaign in style, finishing fourth overall in the Larry Wieczorek mile with a personal best time of 4 minutes, 1.82 seconds and securing his NCAA top-ten time. The Madison, Wisconsin, native also joined three other athletes in beating the previous meet, track and facility records.

Teammate Tannor Wagner also competed in the first indoor mile of his career, finishing ninth overall in 4:11.36.

Middle distance runners Austin Rendon and Hudson Kugel also impressed on the track, both competing in the premier 800 meters. Thanks to a surge at the end, Rendon crossed the line in 1:52.01, marking a huge personal best for the sophomore. Rendon was also one of three athletes to best the previous meet record in the event.

Freshman Kugel finished right behind Rendon to take fourth with a time of 1:52.23.

Freshman Rhys Koch put up a remarkable performance in the 800 meters. The Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, native stayed up with the lead pack through the entire race up until the very end, clocking in at 1 minutes, 54.00 seconds to take third overall. Koch was one of four athletes in Saturday's race to best the previous meet record of 1:55.25.

Fellow freshmen Liam Belson and Alex Jansen also made their 800 meters debut on Saturday. Belson finished tenth overall with a time of 1:57.67 while Jansen finished just seconds behind him in 1:59.87.

Competing in the 400 meters for the first time in his collegiate career was Colin Enz, a freshman from Neenah, Wisconsin. Enz finished fifth overall, crossing the line in 49.49.

After finishing third in the 200 meters on Friday, Stacey Boyd came back to the track and posted a 6.95 time in the premier 60 meters race.

In the preliminary heat of the premier 60 meter hurdles race, Trent Nytes finished in 8:38 to qualify for finals. In the final heat, Nytes went on to finish eighth overall with a personal best time of 8.20.

Two other Badgers also qualified for the finals of the Olympic Development 60 meter hurdles race. Freshman Peyton Frankenreider posted a qualifying time of 8.30 and Zach Lorbeck finished in 8.47 to advance to the final heat. In the finals, Frankenreider finished fifth with a time of 8.36 and Lorbeck took seventh in 8.40.

Also competing in the Olympic Development 60 meter hurdles were multi-event specialists Paul Afflitto and Travis Toliver. Afflitto finished in 8.58 while Toliver crossed the line in 8.83.

Wrapping things up for UW were the men's 4x400 relay squads.

In the premier 4x400 relay race, the Wisconsin squad of Stacey Boyd II, Eric Brown, Robby Hatch and Ryan Dundun earned a top-10 finish with a time of 3:15.74.

The Wisconsin "C" team of Colin Enz, Rhys Koch, Hudson Kugel and Austin Rendon finished fifth overall in 3:22.96 while the Wisconsin "B" relay of Paul Afflitto, Peyton Frankenreider, Zach Lorbeck and Trent Nytes finished sixth with an overall time of 3:22.96.

Up next, the Badgers are headed to Bloomington, Indiana for the Indiana Relays. Hosted by the University of Indiana, the meet is scheduled to run from Friday, January 25 through Saturday, January 26.

Larry Wieczorek Invitational
Iowa City, Iowa
January 19, 2019

60 Meters (Premier)
T11. Stacey Boyd II – 6.95

60 Meter Hurdles (Premier Preliminary)
8. Trent Nytes – 8.38

60 Meter Hurdles (Premier Finals)
8. Trent Nytes – 8.20

60 Meter Hurdles (Olympic Dev)
6. Peyton Frankenreider – 8.30
8. Zach Lorbeck – 8.47
9. Paul Afflitto – 8.58
12. Travis Toliver – 8.83

60 Meter Hurdles (Olympic Dev Finals)
5. Peyton Frankenreider – 8.36
7. Zach Lorbeck – 8.40

400 Meters
5. Colin Enz – 49.49

800 Meters
3. Rhys Koch – 1:54.00
10. Liam Belson – 1:57.67
12. Alex Jansen – 1:59.87

800 Meters (Premier)
3. Austin Rendon – 1:52.01
4. Hudson Kugel – 1:52.23

Mile (Premier)
4. Olin Hacker – 4:01.82
9. Tannor Wagner – 4:11.36

3000 Meters (Premier)
Zack Benning - DNF

4x400 Relay
5. Wisconsin "C" (Kugel, Rendon, Koch, Belson) – 3:22.88
6. Wisconsin "B" (Afflitto, Frankenreider, Lorbeck, Nytes) – 3:22.96

4x400 Relay (Premier)
10. Wisconsin (Boyd II, Brown, Hatch, Dundun) - 3:15.74