2009-10 Drake Track & Field Head Track & Field Coach 10th Season Missouri (1990)
Two-time Olympian Natasha KaiserBrown is in her 10th year directing the Drake track and field program. Brown served seven years as an assistant track coach at the University of Missouri from 1993-2000. Brown also served as an assistant coach at Northwestern (La.) State University in 1992-93. Brown was inducted into the 2008 National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) National High School Hall of Fame, becoming the 15th Iowan to be nominated by the Iowa High School Athletic Association and subsequently elected to the NFHS Hall of Fame. During her tenure as Drake head track and field coach, the Bulldogs have set 18 school records with senior Marcus Gaines setting a school mark in the long jump en route to winning the 2008 Missouri Valley Conference Indoor meet. He also won the 2009 MVC Indoor title. Under Brown’s guidance, Jordan Malmstrom won the 100 at the 2007 MVC Outdoor meet, where Derek Johnson won the 100 hurdles. The duo was part of a four-man contingent that competed in the 2007 NCAA Midwest Regional. Drake qualified in a school record seven events at the 2005 NCAA Midwest Regional Outdoor Track and Field Championships. In her first year as head coach of both the men’s and women’s track teams in 2004, Drake had three athletes advance to the NCAA Midwest Regional in Joel Lelacheur, pole vault; Theotto Lillard, 400 hurdles; and Matt Sanderson, long jump and triple jump. In 2003, Regina Hill became the first Drake athlete to win an individual title in the Missouri Valley Conference women’s outdoor meet since 1996 when she captured the 100 and ran on the winning 4x100 relay, which set a Southern Illinois stadium record. Hill also competed in the 100 at the 2003 NCAA Midwest Regional and was on the 4x100 relay, which placed fifth in the Regional championships after entering the meet ranked 12th. In her first year, Kaiser-Brown coached Sarah Murton to the 2000 Missouri Valley Conference individual cross country title. In 2002, Brown saw Hill place second in the long jump and third in the 100 in the MVC Outdoor Championships.
The Brown family (clockwise left to right): Natasha, Brian, Quinton, Elexandria and Kristian.
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Natasha Kaiser-Brown was inducted into the 2008 National Federartion of State High School Association Hall of Fame.
The former Natasha Kaiser, a native of Des Moines, graduated from Roosevelt High School where she was a nine-time Iowa state high school champion before a distinguished career at the University of Missouri. Kaiser-Brown represented the United States on 16 national teams, highlighted by running a leg on the U.S. silver medal women’s 4x400 relay at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Kaiser-Brown was ranked second in the world in the 400 in 1993 after her silver medal performance at the 1993 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. She also won a gold medal as a member of the 4x400 relay team that established a world championship record of 3:16.71 at the 1993 World Championships. She also was a member of the 4x400 relay team which set an American record en route to winning the silver medal at the 1997 World Indoor Championships. She was ranked in the U.S. top 10 in the indoor and outdoor 400 eight times from 1989 to 1994. Brown was a sixtime NCAA All-American at Missouri, setting a national collegiate record of 51.92 in the 400 at the 1989 NCAA Indoor Championships. She was a five-time Big Eight Conference champion and was named the 1989 Big Eight Female Athlete of the Year. She has been a household name with the Drake Relays as either an athlete or coach, dating back to her high school career in 1984. She was the first recipient of the Gerry Cooley Award, presented annually to the outstanding high school girls’ performer, at the 1985 Drake Relays, competing for Roosevelt High School. Kaiser-Brown competed in 16 Drake Relays, winning the special 400 at the 1990, 1993 and 1998 Drake Relays, while being inducted into the 1995 Drake Relays Athletes Hall of Fame. She also was selected as one of 20 Drake Relays Athletes of the Century in conjunction with the 100th running of the Drake Relays. Kaiser-Brown dominated girls high school track in Iowa in the early 1980s during her days at Roosevelt High School in Des Moines. She was a nine-time state champion (six individual events and three relays) and graduated in 1985 with school and state records in the 100 meters (:11.5), 200 meters (:24.1) and 400 meters (:54.09). She lost only one individual race during her high school career. Kaiser-Brown won the girls’ prep invitational 100 in the 1984 Drake Relays, while anchoring Roosevelt to victory in the inaugural girls’ prep sprint medley relay. She led the Riders to Drake Relays sprint medley and 4x400 relay crowns in 1985. Natasha and her husband, Brian, have a nine-year old daughter, Elexandria; a seven-year-old son, Quinton; and a six-year-old son, Kristian. Bulldogs | 7
2008-09 Drake Track & Field
NATASHA KAISER-BROWN
2009-10 Drake Track & Field 2008-09 Drake Track & Field
DAN HOSTAGER
Head Cross Country Coach 11th Season Northern Iowa (1990) Dan Hostager has served the past 11 years as the Bulldog men’s cross country coach and completed his sixth year as head women’s cross country coach. He also was the men’s head track and field coach at Drake for three years and is currently an assistant coach for the track and field program. Hostager has been raising heads ever since his arrival at Drake. He was named the Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Coach of the Year in 1999 after leading the Bulldogs to their first league title since 1970. The 1999 Drake cross country team ranked second in NCAA Division I programs designated as “All-American with distinction” by the U.S. Cross Country Coaches Association for a 3.52 cumulative team grade-point average. The team grade-point average for the 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 teams also ranked in the top ten nationally. The 2006 Drake men’s cross country team was honored by the NCAA for its achievement in the classroom by finishing in the top 10 percent of teams nationally based on the Academic Progress Report. He guided the men’s cross country program to secondplace finishes in the 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006 Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Team Championships, while the Bulldogs finished third in 2004. The Drake men’s team won the distance medley relay at the 2009 MVC Indoor Championship. Drake senior Brent Wilberts won the individual 2003 MVC cross country race, hosted by Drake, posting the fastest championship winning time since 1983. Wilberts was named the MVC Runner of the Year and finished 55th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Drake senior Bobby Anderson won the individual 2004 MVC cross country race and was named MVC Runner of the Year while also competing in the NCAA Cross Country Championships. In the fall of 2006 Hostager coached senior Ashley Anklam to become just the third runner in Drake history to win the MVC women’s individual cross country title. Hostager led the men’s track team to third in the 2000 MVC Indoor Championships for Drake’s highest finish since placing third in the 1987 meet. The men’s track team also finished fourth in the 2000 MVC Outdoor Championships to match its best effort since a fourth-place finish in the 1988 league meet. In 2000, Drake athletes set school indoor records in the 3,000, 5,000 and triple jump and outdoor school marks in the triple jump and 10,000. Jason Lehmkuhle also qualified to run the 10,000 meters at the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials, becoming the first Drake athlete to accomplish that feat since sprinter Kevin Little in 1992. Lehmkuhle ran the fastest 10,000 time in MVC history in 28:44.91 at the Stanford Invitational to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials. Lehmkuhle and Matt Gabrielson competed in the 2005 World Cross Country Championships, as well as the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 5,000. Gabrielson, Lehmkuhle and former Drake runner Zac Schnedel also qualified for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials. The 2001 season saw Marc Dzradosi set school records and provisional national qualifying marks in both the indoor and outdoor triple jump. Troy Trygstad also achieved the provisional national qualifying mark in the indoor mile (4:04.71) and the outdoor 1,500 (3:44.47). Joel Lelacheur (pole vault) and Wilberts (1,500) advanced to the 2003 NCAA Regional Outdoor Championships; with Wilberts qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Championships 8 | Bulldogs
with his 3:43.61 clocking that also earned him a trip to the 2003 U.S. Outdoor Championships. Hostager served three years as head track coach at Upper Iowa with his squads setting 19 men’s and women’s school records in 1997, climaxed by coaching Dennis Black to the NCAA Division III indoor and outdoor national titles in the shot put. A 1990 graduate of Northern Iowa, Hostager was the head cross country coach and assistant track coach for the men’s and women’s programs at St. Cloud State from 1993-96. Hostager has completed his USATF Level II coaching certification in the endurance, jumping and throwing events and is working on his USATF Level III in the endurance events. Hostager qualified for the 1992 and 1996 U.S. Olympic trials in the marathon and was the 1992 Road Runners Club of America national champion in the 10,000 meters. He owned the UNI school indoor record in the 3,000 (8:02.67) and also earned All-American honors in the 3,000 at the 1989 NCAA Indoor Championships. Hostager and his wife, Maria, have a 15-year-old son, Noah; and a seven-year-old son, Quincy.
KEVIN HENDERSON Assistant Coach Second Season Auburn (1989)
Former U.S. national champion Kevin Henderson is in his second year on the Drake track and field coaching staff. He works primarily with sprints and hurdles, while serving as recruiting coordinator. Henderson was a six-time NCAA All-American at Auburn, competing in the 400-meter hurdles and the 1600 meter relay. Henderson placed third in the 400 hurdles in 1985 and fourth in 1987 at the NCAA Championships. He also was a six-time Southeastern Conference champion and still holds the school indoor record in the 1600 meter relay. He was the 400 meter hurdles champion in the SEC Conference in 1985 and 1989. His personal best in the 400 hurdles is 48.68. Henderson won the 400 hurdles at the 1988 U.S. Championships, while finishing second in 1989. He also was fourth in the 400 hurdles at the 1990 U.S. Championships, while finishing fifth in 1993 and sixth in 1991 and 1994. Henderson ran in the 1989 World University Games and competed on the American and European track and field circuits from 1993-2001. Henderson was a two-time Ohio state prep champion in the 300 meter hurdles at Chanel High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Auburn in 1989, where he volunteered as an assistant. Henderson came to Drake after serving as an assistant track and field coach at Mesa Community College in Mesa, Ariz. from 2005-2008. He was department manager at EXPO Design Center from 2003-2008 and prior to that was in the same position at Home Depot. Henderson and his wife, Kristine, have two sons, sevenyear old, Samuel, and three-year old Daniel.
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2009-10 Drake Track & Field Asssistant Coach Ninth Season Northwestern (La.) State (1990) Brian Brown is in his ninth year as an assistant coach on the Drake staff, working with the high jump and horizontal jumps. He also serves as the director of the Drake Relays, overseeing this year’s 100th running of this track and field extravaganza April 22-25. Under Brown’s guidance, current senior Marcus Gaines won both the 2008 and 2009 Missouri Valley Conference Indoor long jump titles, and set a new indoor school record of 25-3.25 last year. Gaines also qualified for the 2006 and 2007 NCAA Outdoor Regionals. Brown, who owns the Drake Relays special invitational high jump record of 7-7 set in 1997, was an NCAA Indoor high jump champion for Northwestern State, as well as a medalist at the U.S. Indoor and Outdoor Championships. He was ranked seven times in the top ten U.S. high jump list during his distinguished career, as well as No. 9 in the world in 1998. He owns a personal best of 7-8 in 1990 and was the bronze medalist at the 1998 Goodwill Games. A 1990 graduate of Northwestern (La.) State, Brown also received his masters and doctorate degrees from the University of Missouri in 1995 and 2005, respectively. He served two years as a compliance coordinator with the Missouri Athletic Department. Brian is married to Drake head track and field coach Natasha Kaiser Brown and the couple has three children.
MARK KOSTEK Assistant Coach Second Season Nebraska (1986)
Mark Kostek brings a wealth of experience in his second year as assistant track and field coach, overseeing the throws
events. Earning a reputation as one of the finest track meet promoters and organizers in the nation, Kostek was instrumental in Drake serving as host of the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, as well as landing the 2010 U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships. He also played an instrumental role in the $15 million national fundraising campaign for the renovation of Drake Stadium. The Hartford, Conn., native had served as an assistant coach and track and field coordinator at the University of Nebraska since 1980 before his arrival at Drake where he served as the 11th Drake Relays director from 2001-05. During his five-year tenure as Drake Relays director, 32 Relays records were established. He expanded the meet to three days, including a distance carnival on Thursday. The 2004 Drake Relays featured a record 116 events. He was named the Associate Athletic Director for External Affairs and Drake Relays in February of 2005. He is in his first year of a newly created role within the Drake Athletic Department, serving as assistant athletic director of the Bulldog Club annual fund and special events which includes the Drake Relays and being the point person for alumni relations. www.GoDrakeBulldogs.com
In 1996 Kostek was appointed to the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Committee, serving as the indoor track and field chairman from 1999-2000. He also was a member of the NCAA Rules Subcommittee from 19962000. Kostek holds an IAAF national technical official officiating certificate (one of only 12 in the U.S.) and served in that capacity for the 2004 and 2008 USA Olympic Trials and the 2005 USATF Outdoor Championships. He also served on the USATF Outdoor Oversite Committee from 2001-03. Kostek was field event referee for the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships from 2001-05 and served as the running referee for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2001 and 2003-05. Kostek also served as referee and coordinator of officials for the Missouri Valley Conference Indoor and Outdoor Track Championships from 2001-06. Kostek holds degrees from the University of Nebraska in education in 1986 and a masters of public administration from Drake in 2007.
KELLY MALARKEY Assistant Coach Fourth Season Drake (2006)
Kelly Malarkey, a former three-year letterwinner on the Drake track and field and cross country teams, is in her fourth year as an assistant coach. The Prairie Village, Kan., native graduated from Drake in 2006 with a degree in education. She set the Drake school record in the women’s 3,000 steeplechase of 11:09.97 as a senior en route to a sixth-place finish in the Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Championship. She was a two-time selection to the MVC Scholar-Athlete Track and Field team.
TREVOR RICHARDS Volunteer Assistant Coach 13th Season Iowa State (1990)
Trevor Richards, a former All-Big Eight Conference performer for Iowa State, is in his 13th year as a volunteer coach, guiding the pole vaulters. Richards won the gold medal in the masters 40 age division at the 2007 World Masters Track and Field Championships in Riccione, Italy, soaring 15 feet 1 inch. During his tenure at Drake, Richards coached Joel Lelacheur to two consecutive appearances in the NCAA Midwest Regionals. He also coached Jessica Hetcko to school indoor and outdoor records in the women’s pole vault, along with earning all-league honors three times in that event. Under Richards’ tutelage, Lelacheur set a Drake freshman record at 16-2. He also finished second at the 2002 Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Championships and third in 2003. Richards, a native of Columbus, Ohio, was captain of the 1990 Iowa State track team and finished third in the Big Eight Conference outdoor meet that year. He owns the Iowa State school indoor (17-1/2) and outdoor (17-5) records.
Bulldogs | 9
2008-09 Drake Track & Field
BRIAN BROWN