AMES, Iowa – Facing some of its toughest competition to date, the Drake University men's and women's track and field teams continued to put up consistent performances at the Iowa State Classic this weekend at the Cyclones' Lied Recreation Center.

“Today's performances were about consistency,” said Drake head coach Natasha Kaiser-Brown of the second day of competition on Saturday. “We didn't have anyone deliver in the race or jump of their career, but they continued to do enough things correct to yield positive results.”

The highlight of the weekend came on Friday with senior Brogan Austin (Boone, Iowa) breaking the school record in the men's 5,000 meters with a time of 13:59.71.

On Saturday, Danyelle Cole (Kansas City, Kan.) moved two spots from her qualifying position in the women's 60 meters to take sixth in a time of 7.77. The men's squad got another strong showing in the high jump from Ryan Cook (Colorado Springs, Colo.) with a fifth-place finish and a clearance of 6-8.75.

“Ryan Cook jumped well coming off a week of rest and Danyelle Cole claimed the last qualifying spot in the 60 meters, but improved to finish sixth in the event,” Kaiser-Brown said. “I am excited to see what the next two weeks bring heading into the MVC Championship.”

Other highlights that generated that excitement from the coach staff included Rob McCann (Mississauga, Ontario) finishing seventh in the unseeded section of the men's 3,000 meters with a time of 8:19.16 to shatter his previous personal best in the event by more than 25 seconds. Emma Huston (Des Moines, Iowa) continued her strong sophomore season by finishing 13^th in the women's 3,000 meters with a time of 10:08.96 while freshman Samantha Nielsen (Maplewood, Minn.) was seventh in the unseeded 800 meters in 2:20.61, just a second off her personal best.

The Bulldogs return to action on Friday, Feb. 21 at the Iowa Invite in Iowa City, Iowa. The meet will be the teams' final tune-up before the MVC Championship the following week.