Drake Relays Begin Friday for Ohio State – Ohio State Buckeyes
4/23/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
Drake Relays Official Site | Live Results
April 23, 2015
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State track and field team travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for the 106th edition of the Drake Relays April 24-25.
The annual meet is hosted by Drake University on the famous “Blue Oval” inside Drake Stadium. The venue has hosted several premiere track and field events including the 2010 and 2013 USA Track and Field Championships and multiple NCAA regional championships and NCAA outdoor championships.
All information regarding the meet can be found using the link at the top of the page. A complete recap will be available following competition on OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
Notable Competing Teams
Arkansas (No. 5 W, No. 7 M)
Arizona
Arizona State
Baylor (No. 9 W, No. 12 M)
Georgia (No. 7 W, No. 11 M)
Illinois
Iowa
Iowa State
Kansas
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri (No. 21 W)
Nebraska (No. 19 M)
Notre Dame (No. 24 W)
Ohio State
Oklahoma State (No. 11 W, No. 17 M)
Ole Miss
Purdue
Texas Tech (No. 10 M, No. 18 W)
Blanks Named B1G Track Athlete of the Week
Redshirt junior Antonio Blanks was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Week Wednesday by the conference office, sharing the award with DJ Zahn of Illinois.
Blanks starred for the Buckeyes last Saturday at the Virginia Challenge in Charlottesville, Va., returning to his All-Big Ten form with a win in the 400-meter hurdles. Blanks ran a time of 50.42 for the victory, trimming over two seconds off his previous season-best performance in the process. The time, which ranks 11th in Division I this season and second behind Zahn in the Big Ten, is the fastest from the Dayton, Ohio, native in nearly three years.
Blanks also anchored the men’s 4×400-meter relay team to a first-place finish. Sophomore LaMar Bruton, junior Champ Page and senior Timothy Faust joined Blanks in producing a season-best time of 3:05.91, the eighth-best time in Division I this season and the top time in the Big Ten.
The weekly award is the first for Blanks in his Buckeye career.
Borchers Wins Big Ten Medal of Honor
Senior Katie Borchers, along with men’s tennis senior Kevin Metka, was announced as an Ohio State recipient of the Big Ten Medal of Honor at the Scholar-Athlete Dinner April 13 at the Ohio Union.
Each member institution in the conference gives the award annually to the male and female student-athletes in the graduating class who have attained the greatest proficiency in both academics and athletics. The Big Ten Conference office established the award in 1914 for men and an additional award for the top female was instituted in 1982. The award includes a $5,000 postgraduate scholarship.
Borchers, from Russia, Ohio, is one of Ohio State’s all-time best middle distance runners on the track and the most accomplished women’s cross country athlete in school history. She is the reigning Big Ten 800-meter indoor and outdoor champion, a four-event school record holder and Second Team All-American. On the cross country course, Borchers is the only two-time All-American and All-Big Ten honoree for the Buckeyes, last season leading the Scarlet and Gray to its second-ever appearance at the NCAA championships. Academically, Borchers is a 2014 Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, 2014 Capital One Academic All-District selection, a four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and four-time Ohio State Scholar-Athlete. Borchers is majoring in exercise science, with plans to attend graduate school for physical therapy.
“I’m speechless right now,” Borchers said. “I couldn’t be more grateful for those who helped me in my time here. Over the years, I adapted to the life of a student-athlete, accepted the challenge and I’m honored to receive this award.”
30th Jesse Owens Classic Set for Next Weekend
Athletes from all levels, including individuals from more than 35 colleges and universities are scheduled to compete at the 30th Jesse Owens Track & Field Classic May 1-2 at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
Like the J.O. Classics of the past, the 2015 edition will serve as a stage for collegiate and post-collegiate athletes to perform at their highest levels. In its history, the Jesse Owens Track & Field Classic has served as a top venue for many future and former Olympians. Current and past record holders for the Jesse Owens Track & Field Classic include Olympic medalists John Drummond, Michelle Finn, Allen Johnson, Edwin Moses, Dwight Stones and former Buckeyes Diane Dixon, Joe Greene and Butch Reynolds. Others of Olympic fame include Judi Brown, Roger Kingdom, Carl Lewis, Louise Ritter and Calvin Smith, as well as past OSU Olympians Mark Croghan and Stephanie Hightower.
Buckeyes in the USTFCCCA National Rankings
The Buckeye men are ranked 42nd in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division I Outdoor Track & Field Week 3 Poll, released April 20.
OSU totaled 51.31 points in the weekly poll. Seven Big Ten teams are featured in the Top 50: No. 15 Penn State, No. 19 Nebraska, No. 27 Iowa, No. 34 Michigan, No. 41 Purdue, the Buckeyes and No. 45 Illinois. Texas A&M is the No. 1-ranked team, followed by No. 2 Florida and third-ranked Oregon.
The OSU women are ranked 49th overall with 40.87 points. Six Big Ten rivals are represented in the Top 50: No. 14 Michigan State, No. 26 Michigan, No. 31 Nebraska, No. 42 Penn State, No. 47 Wisconsin and the Buckeyes. Texas A&M is also the top-ranked women’s team in the Week 1 poll, followed by No. 2 Florida and No. 3 Texas.
Week 4 rankings are released April 27.
Buckeyes in the USTFCCCA Great Lakes Regional Rankings
Men (Top 5)
1. Indiana — 722.05 points
2. Eastern Michigan — 589.00
3. Ohio State — 558.92
4. Akron — 527.87
5. Michigan State — 493.18
Women (Top 5)
1. Michigan State — 677.52
2. Notre Dame — 611.58
3. Ohio State — 562.37
4. Purdue — 510.18
5. Michigan — 489.12
The regional team index uses data provided by www.TFRRS.org for only the 2015 indoor season and is a reflection of a team’s all-around strength. The regional team index is scored using the current national-team ranking formula as if there were separate regional championships across the country.
Scarlet and Gray in the Individual Top 25
Four Buckeye athletes and three relay teams have posted Top 25 times/marks in Division I this season according to Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS). A look at where the Buckeyes sit:
Men
· LaMar Bruton, Champ Page, Timothy Faust, Antonio Blanks — No. 8, 4×400-meter relay
· J.C. Murasky — No. 11, shot put
· Blanks — No. 11, 400-meter hurdles
· Jackson Neff — No. 12, 3000-meter steeplechase
· Bruton — No. 24, 400-meter dash
Women
· SoSo Walker, Aaliyah Barnes, Beatrice Hannan, Aisha Cavin — No. 11, 4×400-meter relay
· Aliyah Everson, Cavin, Chesna Sykes, Barnes — No. 24, 4×100-meter relay
#StrongerTogether
Stronger Together is the official team motto of the 2015 Buckeyes as the squad embarks on its first season as a combined program in nine years. #StrongerTogether will be featured throughout the season in social media posts.
Last Time Out
The Buckeyes lit up the track at the Virginia Challenge in Charlottesville, Va., April 17-18, winning six event titles over two days of competition at Lannigan Field.
Blanks won the 400-meter hurdles helped the men’s 4×400-meter relay team to victory on his way to B1G Track Athlete of the Week honors. Ohio State would make it a sweep of the 4×400-meter relay titles as the women’s team, the reigning Big Ten indoor champions in the event, also emerged victorious with season-best time of 3:34.00, the fourth-best time in school outdoor history, the 11th fastest in Division I this season and the top time in the B1G.
Two seniors were winners in the field for the Buckeye women. Abie Ehimwenman claimed first place in the long jump with a season-best mark of 5.96 meters (19-6.75), while Carly Pendleton won the hammer throw with a season-best throw of 52.54 meters (172-4.00).
Also earning a win for the Scarlet and Gray was Cole Gorski in the men’s pole vault, as the freshman cleared the bar at a collegiate-best height of 4.90 meters (16-3.75).
Murasky led an impressive list of non-winners for the Buckeyes. The redshirt junior crushed his previous personal-best mark in the shot put, finishing fourth in an extremely competitive invitational with a throw of 19.72 meters (64-8.50), a distance that ranks the redshirt junior third in OSU outdoor history, 11th in Division I this season and third in the Big Ten.
Freshman Allyson Simmons set the school outdoor record in the women’s pole vault, clearing the bar at a season-best 3.70 meters (12-1.50).
In the women’s 200-meter dash, Cavin ran a personal-best time of 23.42 to earn runner-up honors, a Top-30 time in Division I this season and the third fastest in the Big Ten. Another runner-up performance came in the women’s 400-meter dash, as Walker crossed the finish line in a season-best time of 53.38, a Top-35 performance in Division I this season.
Up Next
Ohio State hosts the 30th Jesse Owens Classic May 1-2 at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
