The Drake Relays are rapidly approaching in what is almost sure to be an event the entire state keeps an eye on. Iowa track and field will head back to compete on the Blue Oval in what will be its final meet before hosting the Big Ten Outdoor Championships.

It has been an eventful year for the Hawkeyes since they last competed at Drake in 2018. Tracksters have broken records, and the Hawkeye men and women have climbed to new highs in the polls.

However, the teams’ performance at Drake last season deserves a rewind.

The headline of the 2018 Drake Relays for Iowa was that the men’s team repeated as Hy-Vee Cup Champions.

The Hy-Vee Cup goes to the men’s and women’s teams with the highest point total in the five relays: the 4×800, distance-medley, sprint-medley, 4×100, and 4×400.

The Iowa men got off to a quick start on pursuit of the cup, finishing in second in both the 3,200 meter and sprint medley to roll up 16 points.

The team finished third in what was a very close distance medley to keep championship hopes alive.

In the 4×100, the Hawkeyes had a bit of a hiccup and suffered a disqualification. This meant that it was all down to the 4×400 to bring home the title for the second year in a row.

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The group of DeJuan Frye, Collin Hofacker, Chris Thompson, and Mar’Yea Harris needed a second-place finish to clinch the title. It was not a dramatic race — the team placed first and posted its second-fastest time of the season (3:05.05) to repeat as champions.

It was the second Hy-Vee Cup victory for the Iowa men since the event was created in 2013. The women finished in 11th with 6 points.

The Hawkeyes also brought home gold in the throwing events at Drake last year — Reno Tuufuli and Laulauga Tausaga swept the shot put.

Tuufuli won the event after tossing a season-best 18.50 meters for his second career title at the Drake Relays. He had won the discus in 2017. Tuufuli was the third man in program history to win the shot put at the Drake Relays, the first since 2004.

Tuufuli also finished runner-up in the discus (58.07 meters).

Tausaga threw what was then a personal record 16.74 meters in the shot put to bring home her first title from the Drake Relays. It was the first time in the history of the women’s program that a Hawkeye had won the shot put at the Drake Relays since the event began in 1977.

Iowa became the third school in Drake Relays history to sweep both the shot puts, the first school since Georgia in 2000.

Chris Douglas also put his name toward the top of the leaderboard for the Hawkeyes at Drake last year.

Douglas finished second in both the 110-(13.92) and 400-meter hurdles. In the 110 hurdles, Douglas missed out winning by one-tenth of a second. He will have another shot at victory later this week.

Last season was rewarding for Iowa at Drake, and the team will try for some more of the same this season.