Ellingson, women's 4x400 provisionally qualify at Drake

DES MOINES, Iowa - Catie Ellingson (Indianola, Iowa/Indianola) turned in a season-best effort in the 800-meter run and the women's 4x400-meter relay team became Simpson's first relay to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Championships as Simpson took part in the Drake Relays on Friday.

The only NCAA Division III athlete competing in the event, Ellingson took on a field consisting  almost entirely of Division I athletes and placed eighth of ten in 800, provisionally qualifying with a time of 2:12.91. Three weeks ago, Ellingson provisionally qualified in the 1500 meters, where she owns the No. 10 time in the nation. Her effort in the 800 is the sixth-best in the NCAA.

The 4x400 team consisting of Sarah Hammel (Dorchester, Iowa/Waukon), Lauren Bucklin (Bondurant, Iowa/Bondurant-Farrar), Lauren Anderson (Oakland, Iowa/Riverside) and Molly Sabers (Iowa City, Iowa/City) finished 13th in the 4x400 (3:56.42). The effort is the second-best in school history and ranks 10th in the nation in 2010.

Like Ellingson in the 800, Bucklin was the only NCAA Division III competitior in the 100-meter hurdles, where she placed 19th (14.85).

The women's 4x100 team of Bucklin, Anderson, Sabers and Alyssa Hedrick (Council Bluffs, Iowa/Jefferson) placed 21st (49.81).

On the men's side, the 4x400 team of Kyle Yarkosky (Albia, Iowa/Albia), Brandon Christensen (Clive, Iowa/West Des Moines Valley), Legrand Bien-Aime (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla./Stranahan) and Marty Rounds (Council Bluffs, Iowa/Jefferson) took 30th (3:23.31) and the 4x800 team of Yarkosky, Eric Patten (Webb, Iowa/Sioux Central), Matt Stone (Boone, Iowa/Boone) and Ben Duea (Urbandale, Iowa /Waukee) finished 18th (8:01.37).

Simpson will return to Drake on Saturday morning, when the men and women will participate in the spring medley relay.