Buy or Sell: Iowa will find more success in their relays than individual events.
Courtney Baumann: Sell. Iowa’s relay teams are up against some tough competition. With relay powerhouses such as Arizona State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Texas Tech competing on the women’s side and Arizona, Arkansas, Baylor, and Illinois on the men’s side, the Hawkeyes will have a tough time trying to break into the top.
Mario Williams: Sell. Iowa’s relay teams on both the men’s and women’s side have seen some tough competition so far in the season. Sure, they’ve done well, but their success doesn’t compare with the success in the individual events. Athletes such as sophomore Aaron Mallett, junior MonTayla Holder, and sophomore Elexis Guster know how to put up great times and come on top in their events.
Buy or Sell: Iowa’s team captains will lead the way for the Hawkeyes at Drake.
Baumann: Sell. Of the six Hawkeye captains, only three are in the lineup in individual events. Allison Gattone will compete in the javelin, Lake Kwaza in 100-meter dash, and Gabe Hull in the discus. Hull has a chance of topping his event for the second year in a row, but Gattone’s and Kwaza’s performances thus far in the outdoor season have been less than convincing. Gattone just barely ranks in the top 300 in the country for javelin, sitting tied for 299, and even though Kwaza did have an exciting weekend at the Mt. SAC Relays, she has been extremely inconsistent in individual events.
Williams: Buy. Despite half of the team captains’ not competing this weekend, don’t doubt the success of Hull and Kwaza. Both have experience at Drake, and Hull has a chance of defending his title. Kwaza hasn’t had an impressive outdoor season — until recently at the Mt. SAC Relays, in which she broke the school record with a time of 11:40. I’m sure she’ll be able to keep the momentum up going into an environment in which she’s performed well in.
Buy or Sell: Iowa will send numerous athletes to the podium.
Baumann: Buy. Maybe they won’t all be gold, but Iowa has a good chance of sending at least three athletes to the top of their categories. Sophomore Aaron Mallett will have the opportunity to face two of the three 110-meter hurdlers that are ranked higher than him in the nation — he’ll definitely want to prove something. Hull won discus at Drake last season, and he will surely have some confidence. Additionally, No. 18 ranked MonTayla Holder only has two competitors with a better time than she does.
Williams: Buy. On the men’s team alone this season, more than five athletes have had a chance to experience being on the podium. I’m sure that those athletes will continue to prove what they can do on the blue oval against some of the same competition it has seen this season. Mallett will be able to compete in many other events other than his signature event, which can give him a shot at the podium.
