Five events to watch: Badgers set to compete at Big Ten Championships

Friday, February 24

The Spire, Geneva, OH

Wisconsin Badgers

Big Ten Indoor Championships

Five events to watch: Badgers set to compete at Big Ten Championships

February 21, 2023 | Men's Track & Field

Wisconsin enters conference meet with top marks

By: Londyn Butler

Live Stats | Watch on B1G+

MADISON, Wis. - The Wisconsin men's track and field team travels to Geneva, Ohio, to compete at the Big Ten Conference Championships this weekend. Events begin on Friday at 9:40 a.m. CT and begin at 11 a.m. CT on Saturday at The Spire.

Here are the five events to watch:

1. WHERE THE TEAMS RANK: Two Big Ten teams are ranked in the USTFCCCA national rankings released Feb. 21. No. 8 Nebraska while defending champion Iowa is ranked 22nd. In the USTFCCCA Big Ten rankings, Iowa leads on the conference ahead of second-place Nebraska. Wisconsin comes in third while Michigan and Indiana are ranked fourth and fifth, respectively.

2. SPRINTING THE WAY: Senior Lawrence Johnson is set to compete in the 60-meter dash this weekend. He ran a personal best of 6.54 seconds earlier this month, breaking a 16-year old school record. Johnson leads the Big Ten and ranks third nationally this season.

In the 60-meter hurdles, freshman Giovanni Wearning made a statement last weekend at the Badgers home meet, running a personal best of 7.90. Wearing's performance landed him sixth all-time at UW and 10th in the Big Ten this season.

3. BADGER THROWS: Grad student Sam Coil is coming off an outstanding performance last weekend, winning the weight throw at the Badgers' Valentines Invitational. His toss of 73 feet, 9 ½ inches moved him to second all-time at UW, second in the Big Ten this season, and sixth in the nation. Jason Swarens also threw a personal best last weekend of 71-2 which landed him fourth all-time at UW and ninth in the Big Ten this season.

Swarens and junior Andrew Stone are set to compete in the shot put this weekend.Swarens is ranks eighth in the Big Ten at 61-6 3/4 while Stone, who has been slowed by injury this season, is 10th at 60-6.

4. WATCH OUT FOR THESE FOUR: The quartet of Colin Enz, Abdullahi Hassan, Jackson Sharp and Adam Spencer are coming off a Big Ten record of 9:19.99 in the distance medley relay this weekend. Enz enters the Big Ten meet ranked eighth in the 400 meters with a personal best of 47.35 while Hassan, the reigning Big Ten outdoor champion at 800 meters, is eighth in this year's indoor 800 meters in 1:48.71. The reigning Big Ten outdoor champion in the 1500 meters, Spencer leads the Big Ten list in the mile in 3:55.61 while Sharp is ranked third in 3:57.45. Sharp also leads the league in the 3,000 meters in 7:44.10.

5. HEFTY HEPTATHLON: Competing in the two-day heptathlon will be Cade Amborn and Quinn Lansill. Amborn set a personal best of 5,478 points last month, landing him fifth in the Big Ten this season. He has set personal bests in four of the seven events this season, including a personal record in the pole vault last weekend with a clearance of 15-10. Lansill has set three personal bests in the heptathlon bests this season.