Iowa’s Big 4 classic extended through 2019

DES MOINES (AP) — The annual doubleheader featuring Iowa’s four Division I teams has been extended through 2019.

The event, known as the Hy-Vee Classic, features the Hawkeyes and Cyclones playing Northern Iowa and Drake on a rotating basis in the state’s capital city of Des Moines. The doubleheader began as a compromise in 2012 so that high-majors Iowa and Iowa State could still face their instate rivals without having to play a true road game.

The event has taken off lately, with sellouts in each of the last two seasons.

Northern Iowa and Iowa, which both advanced to the second round of last year’s NCAA Tournament, play each other in Des Moines on Dec. 17. The Cyclones will face Drake.