DES MOINES, Iowa – Maddi Exline and Kevin Koski made their mark on the Illinois State track & field record books, each cracking the ISU top-10 in their event on day one of the 111th annual Drake Relays at Drake Stadium.
Exline started the day strong for the 'Birds, placing third overall with a lifetime best time of 2:09.78 in the women's university unseeded 800-meter run. With that time Exline is now No. 8 all-time in Illinois State outdoor track & field history. A junior from Streamwood, Illinois, Exline is now a member of both the indoor and outdoor top-10 lists in the 800m after clocking a then-personal-best time of 2:10.80 at the 2021 MVC Indoor Track & Field Championships earlier this year.
Racing along with Exline in the 800m was junior Audrey Harrod, who recorded a personal-best time for the second-straight meet. Harrod finished just behind her teammate, taking fourth with a time of 2:10.12. She remains just outside ISU's top-10 list.
In the 5,000-meter run, Koski ran a 31-second outdoor personal best and the seventh-fastest time in school history at 14:10.47 to place ninth overall. Koski's top-10 performance is his second in as many weeks, after clocking ISU's ninth-fastest time in the 10,000m at Virginia last weekend.
ISU RESULTS
Women's 800-meter run
3. Maddi Exline, 2:09.78, personal best
4. Audrey Harrod, 2:10.12, personal best
Men's 800-meter run
5. Riley Wells, 1:51.93
9. Kimathi Johnson, 1:52.79
Women's 1,500-meter run
7. Rachel Hickey, 4:28.32, season best
Men's 1,500-meter run
9. Jake Gillum, 3:52.80
Men's 5,000-meter run
9. Kevin Koski, 14:10.47, outdoor personal best
HOW TO FOLLOW THE REST OF THE WEEKEND
Tickets to the Drake Relays are sold out. All of this year's Drake Relays competition will livestream on RunnerSpace.com April 22-24, with the exception of 2-4 p.m. central on Saturday, April 24. During that window, NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) will broadcast live from Drake Stadium and the Blue Oval. Those who don't have a subscription to RunnerSpace can follow live results here or get updates via Twitter @redbird_trackxc.
STREAMING INFO
April 23, 9 am - 8 pm Central
Livestream on RunnerSpace.com
April 24, 8 am - 5 pm Central
Livestream on RunnerSpace.com (except 2 p.m. - 4 p.m.)
Live broadcast on NBC Sports Network (2 p.m. - 4 p.m. only)
SCHEDULE OF REMAINING REDBIRD RACES
Friday, April 23
- Men's 4x800-meter relay (Anstey, Wells, Gillum, Johnson) - 6:10 p.m.
Saturday, April 24
- Women's distance medley relay (Hickey, Harrod, Exline, Beattie) - 1:15 p.m.
- Jack Anstey - Men's 800m - 2:27 p.m.
UP NEXT
The remainder of the Illinois State track & field squad will compete at Louisville's Clark-Wood Open this weekend from April 23-24. Live results for the Clark-Wood Open can be found here.
For all the latest news on Redbird track & field and cross country, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
