University of Illinois
Drake Relays
Illini Set to Defend Hy-Vee Cup Title
April 26, 2017 | Men's Track & Field
Illini have won four straight Hy-Vee Cup trophies
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois men's track team heads to the annual Drake Relays for the final regular season meet where they will look to defend their four-time Hy-Vee Cup titles. Held in Des Moines, Iowa, the meet begins Thursday, April 27 and concludes on Saturday, April 29.
| Drake Relays | |
|---|---|
| When | Thursday, April 27 - Saturday, April 29 |
| Where | Drake Stadium // Des Moines, Iowa |
| Meet Information | Meet Home | Schedule | Start List |
| Live Links | Results | Stream |
| Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance List | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Social Media | @IlliniMTrack  | #Illini | @Illinimtrack  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
Four-Time Champs Look to Defend Hy-Vee Cup Title
The Drake Relays' Hy-Vee Cup was created four years ago, and each of the last four competitions has ended with the Illini raising the trophy. Given to the team with the most points in the relay events, the Illini will look to defend their title for the fifth straight year. Last year, the Illini held off Texas to win the title with 24 points.
Follow the Meet
Live results will be provided through godrakebulldogs.com/drake/track. Fans can also follow @IlliniMTrack on Twitter for updates throughout the competition. A full recap will be provided on fightingillini.com following the conclusion of competition.
Last Time Out
The Fighting Illini are coming off of an impressive meet at home, winning the Illinois Twilight with 224 points and nine event titles. Devin Quinn led the team with three performances that rank among the best in Illinois history, winning the 100m, 200m and running the anchor leg of the 4x100m relay. Quinn's 100m dash time broke the facility record for the event, surpassing Rod Woodson's 10.26 performance in 1987. Elsewhere, Michael Hyc launched a 15-foot personal-record in the hammer throw, marking 197'7" (60.23m).
Illini to Watch
4x100m Relay // Mo Maat, Josh Eiker, Devin Quinn, Joe Haight and Cole Henderson
Prelims: Friday @ 12:05pm // Final: Saturday @ 3:18pm
Nearly dropping a quarter of a second off of their time last weekend at the Illinois Twilight, fifth-best in school history, the Illini enter Drake Relays clicking at the right time as they head towards postseason competition. The quartet ranks 16th in the country and ninth in the west region entering the final week of the regular season. With Maat, Eiker, Quinn, Haight and Henderson all factoring into the lineup throughout the season, the team has ran a sub-40 time three times this season, including each of the last two weeks.
5K // Reiser, Lafond, Lathrop, Magnesen, Dale, Gold, Pengelly
Final: Thursday @ 9:05pm
The distance group is coming off of an impressive showing in California two weeks ago where five Illini set personal-best performances, including Dan Lathrop, Zach Dale and Zack Smith in the 5K. Joining them in the event on Thursday night will be Jesse Reiser, Sen Pengelly and Dylan Lafond. Reiser set a personal-record in his last 5K, finishing in 14:09.21 at Stanford, while Pengelly ran his fastest 10K of his career (29:38.62) at Mt. SAC. Lafond will be racing in his first 5K of the season after setting the third-best steeplechase mark in the country two weeks ago and running a season-best 1500m at the Illinois Twilight last Saturday.
110m Hurdles // David Kendziera
Prelims: Friday @ 9:45am // Final: Saturday @ 2:44pm
One of the best hurdlers in the country, David Kendziera currently ranks among the top-10 in both the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles. Having won seven of his eight races this season, Kendziera has been named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week twice this season. Kendziera's best time of the season came at Texas Relays when he clocked 13.60 to win the event, which ranks second in the Big Ten this season.
Hammer Throw // Michael Hyc and Matsen Dziedzic
Final: Saturday @ 1pm
The Illini throwers took another big step forward last Saturday at home, as both Illini juniors set personal-best marks in the event. After making an adjustment in recent weeks, Hyc threw a 15-foot lifetime best mark of 197'7" (60.23m) that ranks fourth in school history, while Dziedzic improved on his best marking, tallying 196'9" (59.97m) that ranks just behind Hyc in fifth place all-time. With the two personal-bests, the two throwers now rank amongst the top-10 in the Big Ten conference.
Up Next
The Orange and Blue will have a week away from competition to prepare for the 2017 Outdoor Big Ten Championships in State College, Pennsylvania, May 12-14. Finals of the meet will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network on Sunday, May 14.
Illini Lead Big Ten in Five Events
Five Fighting Illini athletes currently lead the Big Ten in their respective events, each coming on the track. Devin Quinn's facility record at the Illinois Twilight is the most recent addition to the leaderboard, clocking 10.20 to pass Deshawn Marshall (10.28) of Ohio State. Also taking over the lead in the Big Ten was the 4x100m relay team, as they clocked 39.42 at the Twilight meet. David Kendziera continues to lead the 400m hurdles with a 50.17 time at Mt. SAC Relays, while Jon Davis's 13:49.55 5,000m run and Dylan Lafond's 8:42.55 steeplechase lead Big Ten distance events. In total, 14 Illini events rank in the top-8 of the conference entering the final meet of the regular season.
Seven Illini Nationally Ranked in Top-25
With Quinn's record performance on Saturday, the Illini now have seven performances that rank among the top-25 in the nation through the end of last weekend. Dylan Lafond leads the Illini with the third-best time in the 3,000m steeplechase, clocking 8:42.55 in his season debut. David Kendziera ranks in the top-10 in both the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles, while Quinn's 10.20 time at the Illinois Twilight gives the Illini four in the top-10. Also ranked in the top-25, 4x100m relay (16th), Jon Davis (5K) and Jesse Reiser (1500m).
19 Illini Performances Rank Among Top-48 in West Region
Along with the seven Illini marks that rank in the top-25 nationally, 12 others rank amongst the top-48 in the NCAA West region, which would qualify them for NCAA Prelims. Dylan Lafond highlights the list with his region-leading steeplechase time of 8:42.55 that he set at the Mt. SAC Relays.
| Rk. | Athlete | Event | Mark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dylan Lafond | 3K Steeplechase | 8:42.55 |
| 2 | David Kendziera | 110m Hurdles | 13.60 seconds |
| 6 | David Kendziera | 400m Hurdles | 50.17 seconds |
| 9 | Devin Quinn | 100m | 10.20 seconds |
| 9 | 4x100m Relay | 4x100m Relay | 39.42 seconds |
| 16 | Jesse Reiser | 1500m | 3:42.37 |
| 17 | Jon Davis | 5K | 13:49.55 |
| 20 | Aaron Wilks | Javelin | 220'4.5" (67.17m) |
| 21 | Devin Quinn | 200m | 20.80 seconds |
| 24 | Josh Eiker | 200m | 20.82 seconds |
| 33 | Michael Hyc | Shot Put | 58'2.25" (17.74m) |
| 33 | Jonathan Wells | Long Jump | 24'6.25" (7.47m) |
| 37 | Jon Davis | 1500m | 3:45.64 |
| 38 | Sean Pengelly | 10K | 29:38.42 |
| 41 | Michael Hyc | Hammer Throw | 197'7" (60.23m) |
| 42 | Konrad Eiring | 800m | 1:50.41 |
| 44 | Jacob LaRocca | Pole Vault | 16'6.75" (5.05m) |
| 45 | Caleb Hummer | 3K Steeplechase | 9:03.78 |
| 46 | Matsen Dziedzic | Hammer Throw | 196'9" (59.97m) |
David Kendziera Twice Named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week
For the second time this season, Illinois men's track and field hurdler David Kendziera was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week, as announced by the conference office on Wednesday (4/19) afternoon. A redshirt junior, Kendziera led the Illini last weekend in California with a sweep of the 110m hurdles and 400m hurdles at the Mt. SAC Relays. The Mount Prospect, Illinois native currently leads the Big Ten in both events and has won six of the seven competitions he's contest this season.
For complete coverage of Fighting Illini Men's Track and Field, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniMTrack) and Instagram (@IlliniMTrack) and like Fighting Illini Men's Track and Field on Facebook.
