OSU Outdoor Track & Field Travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for Prestigious Drake Relays

OSU Outdoor Track & Field Travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for Prestigious Drake Relays

April 27, 2022 | Cowgirl Cross Country & Track

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State outdoor track & field is set to head north to Des Moines, Iowa, to compete in the 112^th edition of the Drake Relays.

The four-day meet begins on Wednesday with the Decathlon and Heptathlon. OSU kicks off individual competition on Thursday with the relays taking place on Friday and Saturday.

The Cowboys and Cowgirls will each be competing for their first Hy-Vee Cup victory in program history this weekend. The Hy-Vee Cup consists of a series of relays (4x800, Distance Medley, Sprint Medley, 4x100 and 4x400) with the winner being the team that has the most points accumulated through those five events.

"We are extremely excited and honored to return to the Drake for the Relays," Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Dave Smith said. "We've had significant success in our previous endeavors at this prestigious event and I think we are set up for another good run this year."

OSU currently holds the Drake Relays Meet Record in both the 4x800 (8:25.41) and 4x1600 Meter Relays (18:58.11) on the women's side, with the two records being set in 2019 and 2015, respectively.

Alongside the Hy-Vee Cup portion of the event, several Cowboys and Cowgirls will be competing individually with the goal of putting down a regional qualifying time.

Gabby Hentemann makes her outdoor season debut in the women's 10,000 Meters after a successful indoor season which saw her place second in the 5,000 Meters and third in the 3,000 Meters at the Big 12 Indoor Championships in February. The eight-time All-Big 12 finisher across all three seasons is making her event debut in the outdoor 10K after qualifying for nationals last year in the outdoor 5K.

Kian Davis and Chris Middleton-Pearson will be competing in the unseeded portion of the men's 1,500 Meters on Thursday, with Isaiah Priddey competing in the seeded section of the event on Friday. Davis and Priddey are each less than two seconds off the current regional qualifying time of 3:42.58.

OSU will also run teams in both the men's and women's 4x1,600 Meter Relay on Friday with several potential heavy hitters in the lineup. National Champion Taylor Roe, Hentemann and All-Big 12 finishers Sivan Auerbach and Heidi Demeo will potentially wield the baton on the women's wide. All-Americans Ryan Schoppe, Fouad Messaoudi and All-Big 12 placers Shea Foster, Middleton-Pearson and Davis could all participate in the relay.

"The Relays are one of the best-run outdoor events nationwide," Smith said. "The knowledgeable fans and the electric atmosphere make it one of our favorite events every year. Several of our program records have been set there and we're thrilled to return for the 2022 season."

Live results of the Relays can be found at the link below and will be updated throughout the weekend.

Drake Relays results: https://results.drakerelays.us/

For more information on the Cowboys and Cowgirls, continue to check back with okstate.com.