WHAT'S AHEAD: The Drake women's cross country team will compete at the sixth annual Bradley Classic this Friday at the Newman Golf Course in Peoria, Ill., The 6,000-meter race will start at 5 p.m.
LAST YEAR: Then Drake senior Nicole Braunsdorf finished second in the 2008 Bradley Classic, covering the 6,000-meter race in 21 minutes 26 seconds, being clipped at the finish by Northern Iowa's Caedryn Schrunk who won in 21:24.
Drake finished fourth in the 15-team field, scoring 136 points while placing ahead of MVC schools Illinois State (ninth) and Bradley (12th). Drake sophomore Casey McDermott (Newton Iowa) placed eighth in 21:53, while sophomore Meredith Bell (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) was 33rd in 22:44.
A LOOK BACK: Junior Casey McDermott finished sixth to key the Drake women's cross country team to a ninth-place finish at the Loyola Lakefront Invitational in Chicago, Ill., Oct. 3.
McDermott was timed in 18 minutes 7 seconds on the 5,000-meter course that attracted 378 runners. Drake scored 228 points in the 34-team meet. Drake junior Katie Coomer (Overland Park, Kan.) was 36th in a personal best of 18:59, while senior Courtney Heinz (St. Paul, Minn.) placed 56th in 19:21. Sophomore Kirsten Lake (Parker, Colo.) ran a personal best of 19:27.
TRIO IN GRAND VIEW MEET: Junior Lindsay Smith (Lakeville, Minn.) placed 13th to lead a trio of Drake runners who competed in the Grand View Invitational cross country meet Oct. 2 at Ewing Park in Des Moines. Smith was clocked in 20 minutes 59 seconds in the 5,000-meter run. Drake freshman London James (Adair, Iowa) was 14th in 21:11, while sophomore Emily Zipoy (Elgin, Ill.) was 31st in 22:21.
