AMES, Iowa – The Drake University cross country teams closed the 2017 campaign Friday morning at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship in Ames, Iowa.
 
The Bulldogs turned in strong individual performances but did not hit the necessary team or individual marks to advance to the NCAA Championship, ending a solid first season for the program under first-year director of track & field and cross country Mark Carroll.
 
The men's team turned in a 16^th place performance in the 28-team field behind Maximilian Fridrich's (Salzburg, Austria) 44^th place finish among 194 runners. The reigning Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year raced with the lead pack and was in the top 10 through the first three kilometers before falling off the initial pace. However, he did not drop any further in holding his position through the final five kilometers of the 10-kilometer to race to finish in 30:06.0. Illinois' Jonathan Davis was the top finisher with a time of 29:06.2.
 
Bailee Cofer (Overland Park, Kan.) led the women's team in her final cross country race as a Bulldog. She came in 98^th in the 225-runner field with a time of 21:44.3 on the 6-kilometer course. Her performance capped a senior season in which she was the Bulldogs' top finisher in all six races. As a team, Drake's women finished 31^st out of 33 team with a very young lineup that featured only two upperclassmen.
 
Following Friday's NCAA Midwest Regional Championship, Drake's cross country student-athletes will briefly recuperate from the rigors of the season to prepare for the upcoming indoor track and field schedule. The Bulldogs open up the indoor season Jan. 12-13, 2018, at the Graduate Classic in Lincoln, Neb.
 
NCAA Midwest Regional – Ames, Iowa
Drake Individual Men's Results
10 kilometers – 194 runners
44. Maximilian Fridrich, 30:06.0
67. Kyle Brandt, 30:25.0
87. Kyle Cass, 30:37.4
101. Matt Cozine, 30:54.7
154. Chris Kaminski, 34:54.8
188. Joe Romain, 33:40.0
194. Alec Bognar, 35:49.2
 
Drake Individual Women's Results
6 kilometers – 225 runners
98. Bailee Cofer, 21:44.3
164. Morgan Garcia, 22:26.3
175. Olivia Rogers, 22:35.0
184. Rachel Selva, 22:47.9
192. Elizabeth Aho, 22:57.5
204. Meghan Kearney, 23:20.6
207. Millie Bretl, 23:25.21