A pair of local athletes opened competition in the Drake Relays Thursday in Des Moines. Grundy Center senior Emerson Vokes placed 11th in the 3,200-meter run while Dike-New Hartford junior 17th in the long jump.

Vokes missed a person-best in the 3,200 by less than five seconds, finishing in 9 minutes, 21.05 seconds. He was in sixth place after the first 400 meters and remained in or just outside the top 10 through the remainder of the race.