Air Force Academy
Drake Relays
Falcons Capture DMR Title at Drake Relays
4/30/2016 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
April 30, 2016
DES MOINES, Iowa – Air Force captured the distance medley relay title this afternoon (April 30), as several members of the Falcons' track and field team concluded competition at the 107th Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa.
Facing cold and rainy conditions on the Blue Oval at Drake Stadium, the quartet of junior Matt Dorsey, sophomore Tyler Koss, senior Grant Caswell and senior Patrick Corona combined for a time of 9:48.06 to finish first out of 18 teams in the elite Jim Wheelock Distance Medley Relay. Corona secured the victory for the Falcons, as he separated himself from the lead pack of eight runners in the final 300 meters.
With today's victory in the distance medley relay and last night's third-place finish in the 4x800-meter relay (Caswell, sophomore Zac Petrie, freshman Nic Cheuvront, Dorsey), Air Force finished fourth (16 points) out of 20 teams in the Drake Relay's HyVee Cup standings.
The Academy record book received its third individual update of the weekend from sophomore Jamiel Trimble, who registered the second-fastest time in Academy history during the finals of the 110-meter hurdles. Clocking a career-best time of 13.90 to finish sixth, Trimble became just the second hurdler in Air Force history to break the 14-second mark in competition. Trimble, who also reset his Sophomore Class Record and debuted in fifth on the Mountain West's all-time standings in that event, added a seventh-place finish in the 100-meter dash, as he posted a wind-aided time of 10.57 – just 20 minutes before competing in the hurdles.
Junior Taylor Smith finished fourth in the high jump, clearing 6'11¾" during a competition that was moved indoors due to the weather conditions at Drake Stadium, while senior Grant Hamilton finished 14th in the discus throw with a toss of 161'9".
On the women's side, sophomore Giulianna Vessa, senior Naomi Alston, freshman Tami Cardenas and sophomore Carina Gillespie combined to produce the third-fastest distance medley relay in Academy history this afternoon. With Gillespie pulling the Falcons from 10th to fifth during the anchor leg, the squad finished in a time of 11:32.88. With their fifth-place finish in that event, the women placed 12th in the HyVee Cup Standings (four points).
The Falcons return to action next Friday (May 6), when they host the annual Air Force Twilight Invitational at the Cadet Outdoor Track and Field Complex. The meet will serve as the final tune-up before the Mountain West Championships, which begin on May 11, in Clovis, California.
Players Mentioned
