DES MOINES, Iowa – A pair of Iowa natives took down school records for the Northwest Missouri State University track & field teams Thursday night at the Drake Relays.
 
Junior distance runner Caroline Cunningham continued her assault on the women's outdoor record book by taking down the 5,000-meter mark Thursday night at the Drake Relays.
 
Cunningham (Cedar Falls, Iowa) recorded a time of 16:54.94 in the unseeded 5,000 meters to move past Angela Adams' old mark of 16:55.80 set May 13, 2010 at the North Central Invitational in Naperville, Ill.
 
Cunningham's run on Thursday earned her an NCAA provisional qualifying time.
 
It marks the third outdoor distance school record that Cunningham has broken this spring. She owns the school marks in the 1,500m (4:29.71), 3,000m steeplechase (10:29.75) and 5,000m (16:54.94).
 
Fellow Iowa native Reece Smith (Garner, Iowa) shattered his own school record and became the first Bearcat to ever run a time of less than 14 minutes in the 5,000 meters. Smith posted a final lap of 57.40 as he notched the 12th-best NCAA Division II time this season. Smith also captured an NCAA provisional qualifying mark in the race. Smith's previous best in the 5,000 meters was 14:12.94 which he recorded on April 15 at the Mt. SAC Relays.
 
Junior Jake Norris (Papillion, Neb.) earned an NCAA provisional qualifying time in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase. Norris notched a personal-best (9:08.52). It ranks as the fourth-best time in Northwest's outdoor school history. Senior Tucker Dahle (St. Joseph, Mo.) also took part in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:31.06.
 
Sophomore Bailey Blake (Indianola, Iowa) competed in the women's unseeded 800m and placed 11th with a time of 2:12.06.