Five Things to Know: Wisconsin Heads West

Friday, April 3

Stanford, CA

11:00 AM

Wisconsin Badgers

Stanford Invitational

Photo by: Suvir Grover

Five Things to Know: Wisconsin Heads West

April 01, 2026 | Men's Track & Field

Badgers split squads for California competition

By: Dani Savin

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin men's track and field team heads west this weekend, splitting competition between two meets. The throwers will compete at the Triton Invitational in La Jolla, California, while numerous student-athletes from the distance squad make their 2026 outdoor season debut at the Stanford Invitational in Stanford, California.

Fans can follow along on X and Instagram at @BadgerTrackXC. Live stats for the Stanford Invitational can be found at Record Timing while those for the Triton Invite can be found at Finished Results.

1. LAST TIME OUT: At the USC Trojan Invite, Joshua Onwunili led the way for the Badgers, capturing the 100 meters title in a time of 10.41. In the middle-distance events, Zion Omotesa secured a runner-up finish in the 800 meters, clocking 1:53.70 to take second.

2. THROWING TRITONS: The Badgers' throws group returns to competition following a strong showing at the USC Trojan Invite, where Jacob Zednik and Kyle Clabough each earned third-place finishes. Zednik recorded a mark of 211 feet, 11 inches (64.61m) in the javelin while Clabough posted 54-10 ¾ (16.73m) in the shot put. They'll be joined at the Triton Invitational by Jake Schafer, who took seventh in the discus last weekend with a throw of 173-1 (52.76m).

3. DISTANCE DEBUTS: Wisconsin opens its outdoor distance slate this weekend with several Badgers competing in the 1500 meters, including Archie Noakes, who ranks No. 4 in the school history in the indoor mile. Noakes is joined by Matan Ivri, the Israeli national record holder in the 300 meters who also ranks No. 3 in the UW record book in that event and No. 7 in the mile while becoming the 13th Badger to break four minutes. Patrick Hilby, who sits No. 2 all-time in the indoor 800 meters at 1:47.36 and No. 6 outdoors at 1:46.83, will also compete alongside Johnny Livingstone and Henry Risser. In the 5000 meters, Christian de Vaal, Liam Newhart, Nick Gilles and Noakes will represent the cardinal and white.

4. FRESHMAN PHENOM: Risser is poised to make his 2026 outdoor debut this weekend after a standout indoor season. The freshman ranked No. 9 all-time at Wisconsin in the 800 meters and set a school record in the 600 meters with a time of 1:16.31 en route to a third-place finish at the 2026 Big Ten Indoor Championships. The Golden Valley, Minn. native is scheduled to compete in the 400 meters and the 1500 meters this weekend.

5. UP NEXT: The Badgers return the Midwest to compete on April 10-11, splitting between the Illini Deca-Jam, hosted by Illinois, and the UW-Platteville Invitational in Platteville, Wisconsin.