GENEVA, Ohio – The Wisconsin women's track and field team had much to smile about, including 24 team personal records, after the Badgers finished off a sixth-place showing at the 2017 Big Ten Indoor Championships and saw several records fall in the process at the SPIRE Institute.
 
"We finished sixth, but we were right in there," Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Mick Byrne said. "If you look at the point scores there wasn't a lot separating third, fourth, fifth and sixth.
 
"Overall I'm very pleased with the way both teams, men and women, competed today. They competed hard. They represented the university well. They understood what was on the line."
 
Penn State won the team title with 96.5 points. Purdue (94 points) and Ohio State (83) rounded out the top three teams. Wisconsin scored 64.5 points.
 
Ebony McClendon paced the Badgers on Saturday with two third-place finishes. The junior was involved in a tie for third in the 60 meters, as both runners crossed the line in 7.422 seconds. She went on to set her third school record of the weekend in the 200 meters, clocking a time of 23.55.
 
"It feels really nice," McClendon said. "I've been training really hard and I knew it would happen. I didn't think that it would feel this way after it, I didn't think it would feel as easy as it did. A couple of weeks ago I changed my blocks and moved them up. Ever since then I've been more consistent."
 
Senior Brenna Detra was runner-up in the 800 meters. Her time of 2:08.38 was her second-fastest of the season.
 
"It actually felt really good, I was really shocked," Detra explained. "I felt really confident and I just got good position. I kept hearing the coaches say 'You look good, you're perfect,' so I just stayed on it. Once I saw the Michigan girl fade I was just like 'I've got this, I got second.' And I just finished and felt the strongest I've ever felt running that race. It was really exciting."
 
Wisconsin earned another top-three finish in the weight throw as sophomore Banke Oginni threw 66 feet, 8 1/2 inches on her first attempt to earn the bronze medal.
 
Freshman Chinne Okoronkwo also earned a spot on the podium by taking third in triple jump. She jumped a 42-9 3/4, just shy of her personal best.
 
Sarah Disanza had her best race of the season in the 5000 meters. The junior took fifth place in 16:03.05. Amy Davis ran a 16:26.73 and Alicia Monson clocked in at 16:28.06, finishing 10th and 11th, respectively. Senior Michele Lee took 15th in the event with a time of 16:43.68.
 
In the 4x400 relay, Wisconsin's team of Gabby DesRosiers, Detra, Cynthia Ubah and Emma Reifel finished in 3:47.46, earning 11th place.