ex-SOUTH HAMILTON STANDOUT TY KOEHNK (left) was on Iowa State’s winning 4x400-meter relay at the Drake Relays. (Submitted photo/Iowa State Athletics)

DES MOINES — A pair of former South Hamilton standouts competed in the recent 115th Drake Relays at the collegiate level.

Ty Koehnk, who ran on the runner-up 4×400-meter relay for the Hawks last year at Drake, earned his first Drake title while running for an Iowa State University relay team.

A true freshman, Koehnk filled the second leg of the sprint medley relay. Mikey McClain, Dugion Blackman and Darius Kipyego completed the quartet.

The squad led throughout the race, clocking a time of 3:17.23, helping the Cyclones capture the Drake Relays Cup title in the process for the first time since 2021.

In his 200, Koehnk recorded a split of 21.25. Iowa State topped a collegiate field that included Iowa, DePaul and Kansas State.

“A Drake Relays flag has always been a dream of mine and something I always knew I could get,” Koehnk said. “To be back at Drake with Iowa State was an incredible feeling and the opportunity to run with our mid-distance guys — who are some of the best in the country — was the cherry on top.

“The best feeling is knowing that I helped put us in position to win the cup as a team.”

Koehnk also ran the third leg for Iowa State on the 4×100, helping them place fourth overall in a time of 40.89. He had a split of 9.90 running with Grayson Hartman, Gus Langford and McClain, as DePaul won the race in 4.09.

To round out his 2025 Drake experience, Koehnk ran the lead leg on the 4×400 invitational for the Cyclones, which placed sixth. He had a 400 time of 47.93.

North Carolina A&T was first.

Koehnk was a four-time state champion while earning gold for South Hamilton in the 400, 4×200 and 4×400 twice. The 4×400 broke the Class 2A record and posted the eighth-fastest time in Iowa history in 2024, as Koehnk set a school record in the 400.

Austin Busch, another former Hawk who is now a sophomore at Iowa, was fifth in the men’s hammer throw. He had a best toss of 211-0 on his sixth and final throw.

Busch’s teammate, Ryan Johnson, won the event with a throw of 233-5.

While at South Hamilton, Busch won a Drake title in the shot put and was a two-time state champion as a senior, winning the indoor shot put and discus titles. He also was a two-time state runner-up in the discus.

Earlier this season, Busch was the runner-up in the hammer with a collegiate-best 219-1 at the Kansas Relays. That mark ranks fifth all-time in Iowa history, as he also won the Jim Duncan Invitational with a throw of 214-3.