MIKE RODRIGUEZ (AS1) AND COLIN COOMER (B3) lead a group of Drake runners during the Bulldog Classic at Ewing Park in Des Moines Sept. 4. Photo: Tyler O'Neil

The Bulldogs are hoping to finish with more times like those from their last meet – the Loyola Lakefront Invitational – as they prepare for the Bradley Invitational Oct. 16.

The Bradley Invite is the final meet of the season before the Missouri Valley Conference Championship and the NCAA Regionals that follow.

The men’s squad has continually improved this season, with times dropping since the beginning of September.

Even after solid finishes at the Loyola Invite, each runner is still striving for more now that the most important races loom on the horizon.

“We didn’t run as well as we’d hoped as a team (at Loyola), but our progression this season has been good and will hopefully continue this weekend,” Jeff Grassmeyer (E4) said.

Like Grassmeyer, the top runner for the women’s squad, Casey McDermott (AS3) has posted fast times at each meet this season, and she said she believes that the Bradley Invite will be one of the most important meets in terms of MVC Championship preparation.

“Competing at Bradley this Friday will be beneficial for us, because MVC championships will be held there in a couple weeks,” McDermott said.

Head Coach Dan Hostager agrees with McDermott that running well at Bradley will be helpful in preparation for the end of October.

In previous years, the Bulldogs competed in the NCAA Pre-Nationals meet, but Hostager chose instead to have both of his squads race at the Bradley Invite in Peoria, Ill., for one key reason – the teams will race in the MVC Championship on the same course Oct. 31.

“Bradley is the same course as the MVC race in two weeks,” Matt Jurysta (AS2) said. “It’s a fast course, so we’re all looking to run fast times and get some PR’s. We also want to get familiar with the course so when we run for MVC, we can concentrate on running the kind of race we want to and not on the course itself.”

Many MVC teams – four on the men’s side and six on the women’s side – are hoping that competing at Bradley this weekend will give them an advantage over the competition. Drake is hoping that this familiarity will benefit the teams’ times.

“We try not to pay too much attention to what others are doing because in the end, all we can control is ourselves and what we do,” Grassmeyer said. “Everything else ought to take care of itself.”

Hostager said he believes that his Bulldog squads will have to use more than fitness if they want to compete with the numerous MVC teams at the Bradley Invite. He said he believes that both squads must run with confidence at both Bradley and the MVC Championship, and he is looking for upperclassmen to lead the way.

“We’re very fortunate in the fact that we have so many upperclassmen that are natural leaders,” Hostager said. “Even a lot of our underclassmen like Colin Hagan, who is only a sophomore, have provided great leadership by example by doing all of the things necessary to be successful academically and athletically.”

Jurysta agreed with Hostager as he believes that for the team to reach its season goals, it must concentrate on the mental aspects of running instead of the team’s conditioning.

“Our conditioning is pretty good, so as our practice mileage goes down, the intensity has to stay up and we have to keep focused,” Jurysta said. “For the rest of the season, we want to improve our rankings in the conference and national polls. To do that, we will need to keep sharp and stay healthy for the next few weeks.”