Each year high school athletes enter the track and field season fighting the snow, sleet, and wind with dreams of warmer spring days on the Blue Oval. This year's Drake Relays has quite the lineup, including many athletes who are set to join strong NCAA Division I teams this upcoming fall. Next to the Iowa State High School Track & Field Championships, the Drake Relays is one of the most sought-after meets by high school and college athletes alike.
The High School Relays officially begin on Thursday evening with field events. The Girls Discus Finals will kick-off the evening, where Alyssa Corkery is ranked to take the win, coming in with a season-best of 134-11. Some other noteworthy athletes competing are Kenzie Sullivan, Megan Niewoehner, and Leah Dusterhoft, who signed with the University of South Dakota earlier this year. Another premier field event will be the Boys Shotput, with Nick Phelps coming in ranked first after throwing 64-8 just last week. Phelps was the 2A State Champion in the event, as well as the Discus at last year's State meet. The Boys High Jump and Girls Long Jump finals will also compete Thursday evening. Valerie Welch is the leader in the Long Jump this season by far, and will look to extend her lead on the state going into the Championship season as she prepares to become a Colorado Buffalo later this year.
The track
will heat up Thursday evening beginning with the Girls 3000M Run, which will be
the battle of the sisters! The final includes Anna and Marie Hostetler from
Mid-Prairie High School who come in with the top two fastest times, 10:05 and
10:08, respectively. Likewise, sisters Jessica and Brooke McKee will also
compete. Jessica enters with a 10:33 while Brooke has clocked a 10:35 so far
this season. Some other excellent athletes in the event include Iowa State XC Champion
from 2016 Bailey Nock and Iowa City West teammate Gabby Skopec, who placed 4th
at XC State in the fall and has signed with UNI.
The Boys Iowa State XC
Champion and Iowa State Cyclone commit, Patrick Bose will also take the track Thursday
night in the Boys 3200M Run. This premier distance event will also include
other top-ranked athletes like Ryan Murphy and Sam Schillinger, both of whom signed with the Arkansas Razorbacks earlier this year.
Stay tuned for more previews of events and recaps of what went on each day! You can check out results and other content here!
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