Odd?
"The Drake Relays is a big deal to the people out here," Krais said earlier this week in a telephone interview from Manhattan, Kan. "I'm excited to be competing. I'll have a chance to compare it to Penn. To me, there's something special about Penn that can't be replaced. But I want to give Drake a chance."
Krais, 21, a junior, will compete at Drake in the 400-meter hurdles and the 4x800 relay, continuing a season that has seen her make breakthroughs in a number of events as she prepares for the Big Twelve and NCAA championships in the heptathlon.
She established a school record and personal-best time of 57.04 seconds in the 400 hurdles last weekend at the Kansas Relays and ran 13.63 - another personal best - to win the 100 hurdles.
"She is training at an incredibly high level and doing a lot of work on the track," Kansas State coach Cliff Rovelto said on the school's athletic website.
Krais transferred last summer from UCLA, which she attended for two years, because "things weren't working out the way I wanted them to."
Looking for a school that was strong in multi-event disciplines, Krais was urged to speak with Rovelto, who had recruited her out of high school, for some advice. Rovelto insisted he didn't make a sales pitch to Krais, but she liked what he had to say and decided on Kansas State.
"I was looking for a program with a different structure," she said. "This program has had tons of success under coach Rovelto. I think it's a great place for me to get to the next level.
"I think I've made a big step in the 800 and that I moved up in everything else. I felt like my consistency is better. The training methods here are different. It's much more organized. There are little things I hadn't done before which I'm doing now."
