DRAKE RELAYS

Drake Relays: How in-state collegians fared Friday

Andrew Logue
alogue@dmreg.com
Drake Relays

MonTayla Holder and her Iowa teammates were warned.

The weather took a turn for the worse during Friday's session of the Drake Relays, but Holder barely broke stride en route to a second-place finish in the women's 400-meter hurdles.

Afterward, she credited Hawkeyes coaches Joey Woody and Clive Roberts for putting her in the right frame of mind.

"They told us, 'Get over it,' '' Holder recalled. "The Big Ten (meet) is in Michigan this year, so you never know what's going to happen."

What happened Friday was Holder crossing the finish line in 58.41 seconds.

The Hawkeyes also began defense of their 4x100 relay title. They advanced to Saturday's final with a time of 45.07 seconds, which was the fifth-fastest mark out of four preliminary heats (22 total teams).

"We knew it was going to be like this all week," junior Lake Kwaza said of the soggy conditions. "So we're kind of prepared for the worst.

"We got lucky with no rain when we ran."

Last year, Iowa won the 4x100 in 44.51.

"We got there," Kwaza said of advancing. "It was good enough for today, but hopefully tomorrow we can win it."

•Drake freshman Mary Young missed in her bid to qualify for the finals of the women's 100-meter hurdles. Her preliminary time of 13.94 was 11th overall.

•Northern Iowa's Brandon Carnes ran the third-fastest qualifying time in the university men's 100 (10.49). Iowa's Vinnie Saucer Jr. also advanced (10.76).

•Iowa State senior Christina Hillman placed fourth in the shot put, with a toss of 51 feet, 7 ¼ inches.

The Cyclones ran a 3:43.61 in the 4x400, but failed to advance to the final.

"For us, it felt good," said Kaci Storm, who ran the third leg. "Everyone is hurting at the end, so that's kind of a good thing. You know you did it right."

Iowa ran a 3:43.40 in the 4x400.