6 Wisconsin athletes headed to NCAA outdoor track and field championships (2024)

Five University of Wisconsin track and field athletes earned spots in the NCAA Outdoor Championships next week in Eugene, Oregon, after turning in impressive showings under tough conditions at the West First Round last week in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

The meet runs from June 5-8, with the first three days being broadcast on ESPN2 and the final day airing on ESPN.

The Badgers women's team was the first to earn a bid, with senior Olivia Roberts reaching the national championships with a top-12 finish in the hammer throw on Thursday.

The Plymouth, Minnesota, native finished the first round in 10th place with a distance of 202 feet, 7 inches (61.75 meters) on her second attempt. Roberts, who earned All-American honors in the weight throw during the 2023 and 2024 indoor seasons, will be competing in her third NCAA Championship but it will be her first trip to the outdoor championship.

"I'm really thrilled. This is my first year qualifying for outdoor nationals," Roberts said in a statement. "It's my final season, so it's just a great way to finish off my throwing career.

"I'm really excited and looking forward to competing against the best of the best one more time; it will be a great celebration."

The Badgers men's team saw four if its athletes qualify the following day: Adam Spencer, Giovanni Wearing, Andrew Casey, Jackson Sharp and Jason Swarens.

Spencer got things started for Wisconsin on Friday in the 1,500 meters, qualifying for the national championships with a time of 3 minutes, 40.04 seconds. That was good for an automatic bid as the second-fastest time in his section, with the junior finishing third overall in the quarterfinals.

Spencer, who was coming off aBig Ten title in the 800 meters earlier this month, is set to return to compete in the 1,500 at the outdoor championships, after the Melbourne, Australia, native finished third in the event at the 2023NCAA outdoor track and field championships in Austin, Texas.

After Spencer secured his return, and a fourth trip to the championships, Wearing finished third in his heat of the 110-meter hurdles in a time of 13.46 to become the first Badgers athlete to compete for the outdoor national title in the event since Nate Larkin in 2009.

The third member of the Badgers men's team to secure an NCAA bid on Friday was Casey, a freshman from Lakeville, Minnesota, who faced a difficult challenge in the 800 meters. He finished fourth in his heat and sixth overall with a personal-best time of 1:47.41 after battling a pair of indoor champions in his section. Texas senior Yusuf Bizimana, the 2022 NCAA indoor champion, finished first in the heat and overall in a time of 1:46.19, while Iowa junior Rivaldo Marshall, the 2024 indoor champ, took third in the heat and overall in a time of 1:46.96.

Casey's time was the fastest in Wisconsin history for a freshman and the seventh-fastest time in the event in program history.

The final member of the men's contingent to secure a spot in the championships was Sharp, with the senior earning his spot in the 5,000 meters just a few hours after coming up short in the 1,500.

The Wentworth Falls, Australia, native secured his fifth trip to the NCAA championships by finishing his section in fifth in a time of 13:47.95, good for sixth overall.

Swarens is the school record-holder in outdoor shot put (67 feet, 4¾ inches) and ranks fifth nationally this season (65-9½). He is a first team All-American after placing fourth at the indoor NCAA championships. The redshirt senior from Terre Haute, Indiana native competes at 7:40 p.m. June 5 in the outdoor event.

Wisconsin track and field director Mick Byrne lauded the group of Badgers competing in Arkansas, highlighting the difficult weather conditions they dealt with during the competition.

"The heat, humidity, and wind out there today was brutal," Byrne said in a statement. "We haven't competed in those conditions all year, but despite this, our guys found a way to compete hard. To get four guys advancing to the NCAA Finals in Eugene is very exciting.

"Twelve months ago, Andrew Casey was in high school running 1:50 and now he's heading to the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Gio (Wearing) was sensational in the 110 hurdles, as was Adam (Spencer) in the 1,500 meters. What Jackson Sharp did out there today was heroic."

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect a sixth Badger, Jason Swarens, who advanced to the NCAA Championships.