SPRINGFIELD, MO. – The Drake men’s and women’s cross country
teams closed out their season competing in the NCAA Midwest Regional meet.
The Bulldog women’s team finished 16th out of 33
teams, while the men’s team was 19th out of 30 squads. The Drake men
placed ahead of Missouri Valley Conference rivals Bradley, Creighton and
Northern Iowa.
Oklahoma State won the men’s regional with 50 points, while
Minnesota won the women’s division with 60 points.
Drake junior Casey McDermott (Newton, Iowa) was 32nd
out of 173 runners in the women’s division, covering the 6,000-meter race in 21
minutes 44.6 seconds.
Senior Jeff Grassmeyer (Fremont, Neb.) led the Drake men’s
team finishing 50th in 32:31.7 for 10,000 meters.
"Casey ran an outstanding race and came out just short of
earning all-regional honors with a top 25 finish," said Drake head coach Dan Hostager. "I was happy with the efforts for both teams."
Sophomore Derek Campbell (Sycamore, Ill.) finished 124th
in 34:42.1, while sophomore Colin Hagan (Wichita, Kan.) was 128th in
34:49.1 Sophomore Ben Jaskowiak (Madison, Wis.) was 135th in
35:03.6. Zac Bales-Henry (Des Moines, Iowa) finished 157th in
35:58.7 and sophomore Josh Buschling (Washington, Mo) was 166th in
36:32.4
Other women’s results included Drake junior Meredith Bell
(Cedar Rapids, Iowa) 106th in 23:25.6, while junior Tara Scieszinski
(Albia, Iowa) was 110th in 23:36.5. Senior Courtney Heinz (St. Paul,
Minn.) was 117th in 23:47, while junior Katie Coomer (Overland Park,
Kan.) placed 139th in 24:19.9. Junior Lindsay Smith (Lakeville,
Minn.) was 149th in 24:39.6 and freshman London James (Adair, Iowa) was 166th in 25:38.0.
