PEORIA, Ill. - Paced by all five scorers finishing within 38 seconds of each other, the Drake University men's cross country team earned a third-place finish at the Missouri Valley Conference Championship, Saturday, Oct. 27, at Newman Golf Course.
The Bulldogs' third-place finish with 93 points was the team's best showing at the MVC Championship since also finishing third in 2011. Bradley won the race on its home course with 40 points, followed by Illinois State with 71.
Drake's women's cross country team finished eighth out of 10 teams.
Senior Josh Yeager (Center Point, Iowa) continued his legacy of shining at MVC Championships by finishing 10th out of 70 runners on the men's 8-kilometer course. Yeager finished in 24:35.70 to lead a parade of Bulldogs finishing in a pack and earn All-MVC honors.
Matt Cozine (Mt. Prospect, Ill.) was the second Bulldog across the line in 17th place in 25:09.04 followed by
Kevin Kelly (Kilcok, Ireland),
Maximilian Fridrich (Salzburg, Austria) and
Kyle Brandt (Maple Grove, Minn.) finishing in 21st, 22nd and 23rd place respectively. That trio all finished within a second of each other to propel the Bulldogs onto the podium.
SIU's Josh Maier won the race in 23:57.34.
Drake's young women's team was led by Olivia Rogers (Boulder, Colo.) in 33rd place with a 5-kilometer time of 18:31.05.
Rachel Selva (Columbia, Mo.) finished less than two seconds later in 34th place while MyKaela Cole (Urbandale, Iowa) was 37th out of 75 runners.
Millie Bretl (Milwaukee, Wis.) and
Elizabeth Aho (Grayslake, Ill.) completed the Bulldogs' scoring in 49th and 59th place, respectively.
Bradley easily won the women's team title on their home course while Loyola's Lindsey Brewis won individual honors in 16:57.8.
The Bulldogs will train through next two weeks before returning to Peoria for the NCAA Midwest Regional in two weeks.
Men's Team Results
1. Bradley, 40
2. Illinois State, 71
3. Drake, 93
4. Indiana State, 114
5. Northern Iowa, 136
6. Southern Illinois, 136
7. Valparaiso, 146
8. Loyola, 153
9. Evansville, 284
Women's Team Results
1. Bradley, 51
2. Loyola, 75
3. Illinois State, 85
4. Indiana State, 107
5. Northern Iowa, 111
6. Missouri State, 139
7. Southern Illinois, 163
8. Drake, 207
9. Evansville, 232
10. Valparaiso, 267
Drake Individual Men's Results
8 kilometers - 70 runners
10. Joshua Yeager, 24:35.70
17. Matt Cozine, 25:09.04
21. Kevin Kelly, 25:14.05
22. Maximilian Fridrich, 25:14.07
23. Kyle Brandt, 25:14.50
54. Xavier Lechleitner, 26:31.62
55. Kyle Cass, 26:35.05
62. Joe Romain, 27:13.95
Drake Individual Women's Results
5 kilometers - 75 runners
33. Olivia Rogers, 18:31.05
34. Rachel Selva, 18:32.47
37. MyKaela Cole, 18:38.48
49. Millie Bretl, 18:56.81
59. Elizabeth Aho, 19:23.53
68. Meghan Kearney, 20:34.25
