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SMU at Drake Relays Thurs.-Sat., Apr. 27-29 |
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Cardinal relay teams have a very busy weekend at Drake Relays
DES MOINES, Iowa — It was a busy weekend for Autumn Valk (Appleton, Wis.), Emily Bartusek (Albert Lea, Minn.) and Maria Roche (New Prague, Minn.).
A very busy weekend.
In a span of five hours Friday, the Saint Mary's University trio competed in three relay races at the prestigious Drake Relays, placing eighth in the 4 x 200, 19th in the 4 x 100 and 22nd in the 4 x 400.
But they didn't do it alone.
Kelly Tanke (La Crosse, Wis.) joined the trio to run a 1:45.94 in the 4 x 200 and a 50.33 in the 4 x 100, while Ellen Koranda (Blue Earth, Minn.) ran the second leg of the Cardinals' 4 x 400, which stopped the clock in 4:01.65.
And the Cardinals' work wasn't done there.
Valk, Bartusek, Roche and Koranda toed the line again on Saturday, competing in the sprint medley relay where they finished third in their heat, and 15th overall with a time of 4:14.22.
"The conditions were tough for everyone all weekend," said SMU coach Kirk Nauman, noting that the entire meet was run in a constant rain. "I thought we rain pretty well, especially considering the conditions. It wasn't our best showing, but it was pretty good.
"Just to qualify four relays in this meet is great, and I thought the ladies represented SMU well."