DES MOINES, Iowa - The Fighting Illini men's track and field team concluded a weekend of competition at the Drake Relays on Saturday by winning its third consecutive Hy-Vee Cup. The Illini scored 33 points in five relay events to lead a field that consisted of No. 7 Arkansas, No. 10 Texas Tech, No. 11 Georgia, No. 12 Baylor, No. 17 Oklahoma State, No. 19 Nebraska and No. 22 Arizona State. The Illini got event victories from Ian Barnett (5,000m) Cam Viney (400m hurdles), Dylan Lafond (steeplechase), the 4x400m relay and the sprint medley relay.

"As always, this weekend was a team effort," noted head coach Mike Turk. "The relays get most of the publicity at Drake but I am equally as proud of the guys who competed in the individual events as the ones who competed in the relays. Everyone gave their best effort and competed well. At the end of the day, we are one team and everyone gets up on the stage to accept the trophy."

Entering the final day of competition with one point after the 4x800m relay Malik Lee, Tony Zea, Trevor Kuehr and Garrett Lee finished eighth on Friday night, the Illini scored points in all four of Saturday's relays, including a pair of victories.

The sprint medley relay of Maurice Watkins, Brandon Stryganek, DJ Zahn and Joe McAsey scored 10 team points for the Orange and Blue, winning the event in 3:18.85. The 4x400m relay of Viney, David Kendziera, McAsey and Zahn followed the lead of the sprint medley relay, breaking the tape in 3:06.23 to grab an additional 10 points.

"The atmosphere here is awesome," McAsey said. "The fans are always crazy and the stands are always packed. It's always a really good atmosphere. It always pushes you to run."

"There was a lot of energy in the crowd and it was cool to have people rooting for us despite not being affiliated with Illinois," Viney added.

Illinois added eight points to its total with a runner-up finish in the 4x100m relay, coming in behind Arkansas in 40.17. The distance medley relay team of Garrett Lee, Matt Burns, Tony Zea and Barnett finished fifth in 9:46.10, scoring the final four points for the Illini.

In addition to their success in the 4x400m relay, Viney and Kendziera had individual success in the 400m hurdles. After finishing third at the 2014 Drake Relays, Viney came away with the title this year, breaking the tape in 50.87. Kendziera finished third with a time of 51.00.

Also bringing home an individual event title for Illinois was Dylan Lafond. In his first 3,000m steeplechase as an Illini, Lafond held off a late surge from Indiana's Eric Claxton to win the event in 8:56.64.

"We're trying to send a message about changing the sport," Turk stated. "I am really proud of Ian, Dylan and Coach Stewart as they showed you don't need to go around the country chasing races for fast times. They showed we can stay in our backyard and come to Drake to run those times."

On Saturday, Jonathan Wells added a seventh-place finish in the high jump to his seventh-place showing in the long jump, clearing 2.13m (6' 11.75"). Brandon Noe finished seventh in the discus throw with a toss of 50.80m (166' 8"), while Branden Tanthavong bounded 14.49m (47' 6.5") to place 11th in the triple jump. Davis Fraker rounded out the Orange and Blue contingent competing on Saturday, finishing 21st in the hammer with a heave of 52.49m (172' 2").

"We seize opportunities to have team success," explained Turk. "When people look back at the history of the Drake Relays in 50 years, they're going to see Illinois listed ahead of teams like Arkansas and Baylor and that's all we care about. It doesn't matter what the weekly rankings say. I don't think the poll is fair and we are definitely better than the rankings show. Our guys have worked really hard to get what they've got and I am proud of them."

With two relay wins and wins in the steeplechase, 5,000m and the 400m hurdles, Illinois has now won 74 relay titles and 143 overall titles, both Drake Relays best marks.

Next weekend, the Illini will have an opportunity to make some final tune-ups before the Big Ten Championships. Illinois will head to Iowa City, Iowa for the Musco Twilight on May 2.

"The Musco Twilight is a great meet," concluded Turk. "It is well organized and there are some good teams coming in. We've had a great season and have checked off most of our goals to this point. Our main focus now is to get the guys who competed in a lot of events this weekend well rested before Big Tens and get some guys back healthy. Next weekend is a great opportunity for some of the young guys to spread their wings a little bit. I'll be especially interested to see if the young guys who competed in relays this weekend can duplicate their effort and success in the individual events."

Hy-Vee Cup Standings
1. Illinois - 33
2. Arkansas - 18
3. Baylor - 16
4. Loyola (Ill.) - 15
5. Ohio State - 14
6. Nebraska - 12
7. Oklahoma State - 10
8. Minnesota - 9
9. Washington - 8
T-10. Arizona - 7
T-10. Georgia - 7
T-10. Texas Tech - 7
T-13. Air Force - 6
T-13. Eastern Illinois - 6
T-13. Iowa State - 6
16. Iowa - 5
T-17. Notre Dame - 2
T-17. Wyoming - 2
T-19. Arizona State - 1
T-19. Drake - 1

Illinois Results

Saturday, April 25

400m Hurdles
1. Cam Viney - 50.87
3. David Kendziera - 51.00

3,000m Steeplechase
1. Dylan Lafond - 8:56.64

4x100m Relay
2. Maurice Watkins, Brandon Stryganek, Cole Henderson, DJ Zahn - 40.17 - 8 team points

4x400m Relay
1. Cam Viney, David Kendziera, Joe McAsey, DJ Zahn - 3:06.23 - 10 team points

Sprint Medley Relay
1. Maurice Watkins, Brandon Stryganek, DJ Zahn, Joe McAsey - 3:18.85 - 10 team points

Distance Medley Relay
5. Garrett Lee, Matt Burns, Tony Zea, Ian Barnett - 9:46.10 - 4 team points

High Jump
7. Jonathan Wells - 2.13m (6' 11.75")

Triple Jump
11. Branden Tanthavong - 14.49m (47' 6.5")

Discus
7. Brandon Noe - 50.80m (166' 8")

Hammer
21. Davis Fraker - 52.49m (172' 2")

Friday, April 24
Q/q = qualified for finals

4x100m Relay (Prelims)
4. Maurice Watkins, Brandon Stryganek, Cole Henderson, DJ Zahn - 40.20 Q

4x400m Relay (Prelims)
1. Cam Viney, David Kendziera, Joe McAsey, DJ Zahn - 3:05.63 Q

4x800m Relay
8. Malik Lee, Tony Zea, Trevor Kuehr, Garrett Lee - 7:33.92 - 1 team point

Long Jump
7. Jonathan Wells - 7.33m (24' 0.75")

Javelin
9. Ben Dodds - 61.85m (202' 11")
21. Aaron Wilks - 54.16m (177' 8")

Thursday, April 23

5,000m
1. Ian Barnett - 13:56.16
3. Jannis Toepfer - 14:08.13

10,000m
6. Brendan McDonnell - 30:16.28
12. Will Brewster - 30:49.49

Decathlon
11. Corey Hammon - 6,708 points
14. George Wayda - 6,600 points