No matter if it’s together or separated, close to home or far away, the Michigan men’s track and field team knows how to win.

On a busy weekend, the Wolverines won eight of the 12 events they competed in at the Eastern Michigan Invitational, while redshirt junior Ethan Dennis won the open hammer throw at the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, Calif.

Michigan spread its success across many events in Ypsilanti, Mich. Redshirt freshman Zac Miklja and freshman Nate Chapman took first and second place in the 800-meter run, finishing in 1:54.30 and 1:55.08, respectively. Miklja’s time was a personal best. Meanwhile, junior Erick Gavin matched his personal-best time in the 110-meter hurdles, winning the event in 14.13 seconds. Junior Justin Clarke, a fellow sprinter, claimed a victory in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.86 seconds.

Clarke also played a major role on Michigan’s 4x100-meter relay team, which placed first with a time of 41.78 seconds. The team, made up of Clarke, redshirt freshman Codie Nolan, fifth-year senior Matthew Campbell and freshman Antonio Whitfield, has achieved consistent success all season.

“All four of us stayed focused this race,” Clarke said. “Everybody on this team wants to win, improve our times and break the existing school record. Every time we step on the track, that’s our goal.”

In the field, the Wolverines claimed three victories. In the triple jump, fifth-year senior Erik Braun captured first place with a mark of 13.53 meters. In throwing events, freshman Stephen Burk won the javelin with a throw of 56.14 meters, while redshirt freshman Derek Sievers’ 15.73-meter toss won him first place in the shot put.

While Burk and Sievers reigned supreme close to home, fellow throwers, redshirt sophomore Cody Riffle and redshirt junior Ethan Dennis, competed against even fiercer competition at the nationally-recognized Mt. SAC Relays. Riffle finished eighth in the shot put invitational on day three with a throw of 18.08 meters. Dennis overcame an injury sustained during practice the week before to win the open hammer throw on day two with a heave of 64.98 meters. His throw set a Michigan record, breaking his own previous one by over two meters.

“I was definitely a little banged up following the injury, but my mindset was still to do what I’d been focusing on,” Dennis said. “I didn’t worry too much about the competition, and the rest took care of itself.”

Dennis’ victory is indicative of Michigan’s performance as a team this season. The Wolverines competed and succeeded against top competition all year and have continued to build their presence on track and field’s national stage. Michigan needs to sustain its consistent performance if it hopes to succeed at the approaching Big Ten and national championship meets in May.

“Everybody has been improving week by week and staying consistent with their workouts,” Clarke said. “We have been running pretty fast times — we have to keep those in mind as we’re training and keep moving forward.”

The Wolverines will face more strong competition next weekend in Philadelphia for the celebrated Penn Relays. Just like in California, the Wolverines will be pushed to perform at their best against the nation’s strongest runners, throwers and jumpers.

“Winning at Mt. SAC is very cool, but I still feel like I haven’t reached my full potential,” Dennis said. “That’s always a chip on my shoulder that keeps me driving.”