Titan track and field steamrolled competition at Ripon Feb. 4, with women’s and men’s taking first by considerable margins.

The women’s team won with a score of 159, with Ripon at second with a score of 118. The men’s team was able to achieve an even larger gap, scoring 264, leaving Ripon in the dust with a score of 119.

The biggest event for the women’s team was in the 600-meter where five Oshkosh athletes placed, earning UWO 30 points in a single event.

In the 200-meter dash, the men’s team placed the top seven athletes, earning 36 points for the team, and leaving a single point unclaimed.

Mid-distance runner Cyna Madigan led the Titans in the event. She attributes the win to having a strong group in the mid-distance/distance events.

  “We have 10 mid-distance athletes,” she said. “The women’s team did best in the mid-distance/distance events at this meet. This comes from having a good group to work out with during practices.”

In the event Madigan set a school record, with a time of 1:35.17, a confidence booster she plans to utilize in the next meet.

“I’ve had a personal record in the 800 recently as well,” she said. “I’ve been having good confidence boosts lately, so I have good confidence looking forward to next week.”

Taking the top spot was Devin Williams with a time of 22.65, a time he’s proud of but plans to improve further.

“My goal by the end of the season is to get to break 22 seconds,” he said. “Then go on from there, one meet at a time.”

Between now and UW-Whitewater’s Midwest Elite Invitational, Williams said the team plans on putting it into second gear.

“Coach’s plan is to up the ante next week and beyond,” he said. “This meet was good for getting us in the groove of competition. Between now and Whitewater we keep improving and doing what we do.”

In reflection on the meet, sprinter Denzel Thomas said that the team isn’t just satisfied with a win.

“We had those who didn’t hit the marks we wanted,” he said. “That’s okay. We have a lot of energy and will turn that energy into positivity and keep pushing forward onto the next meet.”

The Titans will return Feb. 11 at Whitewater for the Midwest Elite Invitational, involving teams from in and out of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

“Whitewater is going to be a good meet to see our conference competition,” Madigan said. “We also get to see faces we won’t see for the rest of the season which is exciting as a team.”