Attending a school like the University of Wisconsin can be a difficult task to take on. With its fine reputation as being one of the nation's top academic public universities, many people would be scared to even apply. Then there are those who chose to come here not only to tackle the academic world, but also take on the role of student-athlete. For senior sprinter Dan Goesch, this was a task that was difficult for him to become accustomed to. "My first year or two were pretty rough, both on and off the track," Goesch said. "It was a huge adjustment for me. Gradually, though, things got a little bit easier, and I was getting used to my routine." Now in his fifth and final year, Goesch is not only preparing for his last home meet this weekend, but is also preparing for graduation. Goesch will graduate in just a few weeks with a degree in engineering mechanics and astronautics, a degree that demands an immense amount of time to deal with the strenuous workload. "I've definitely learned good time management and how to balance things," Goesch said. While Goesch is busy staying up all hours of the night finishing up his senior design project, during the day he is practicing hours at a time to better his time in the 200, hoping to qualify for the NCAA regional in three weeks. This year Goesch has already made strides toward that goal. In winning the UW-Platteville Invitational 200 meters last month, Goesch ran a 21.27. That time is a mere .08 from qualifying him for the NCAA regional in Columbia, Mo., May 25. "I'm hoping that this weekend will be when it happens," Goesch said. "We're running at home, and if the weather is right. … I know this track well enough that it should happen Saturday." While he has yet to qualify individually, Goesch has already qualified for the regional as a member of two relays. Goesch runs the 400-meter relay with Demi Omole, James Groce and Paul Hubbard, while running the 800-meter relay with Omole, Groce and Joe Detmer. This past weekend, the 800-meter relay team ran the fastest time in UW history while finishing the race in 1:23.88. Goesch credits his improvements to his new training regime with first-year assistant Mark Guthrie. "This year I started doing some of the workouts that the 400-meter guys do, and that has helped me with 200," Goesch said. "With all that 400 work I did … now when I run my 200, I don't get tired at all. I used to be able to start real quick, but die down because I got tired. Now because of the 400, I don't get tired in the 200." Despite running mainly the 100 and 200 meters, Goesch came to the Badgers as a 400-meter runner. He had won a high school state title in the 400 meters as a sophomore, but had a disappointing junior year and was injured his senior year. "It was a difficult time for me," Goesch said. "But coming here, I was excited and ready for a new chapter in my life." With this chapter about to come to an end, Goesch looks back on his five years here as a Badger with nothing but smiles. "The coaches told me coming in that there are three lives to college life," Goesch said. "Those being school life, track life and social life. They said that you would have to choose two of those three to succeed. But I chose all three. It was hard, but I have no regrets. I've had the best time of my life here, and I hope the next part of my life is just as good."