April 7, 2010
The Big Ten Conference office announced on Wednesday the second weekly men’s outdoor track and field awards for meets through April 1-6. Penn State’s Ryan Foster ran away with the weekly award on the track while Illinois’ Matt McHugh collected Field Athlete of the Week honors.
Track Athlete of the Week:
Ryan Foster, Penn State
Jr. - Tasmania, Australia - The Hutchins School
Ryan Foster clocked a personal-best 3:41.26 in the 1500-meters at the Florida Relays last week, finishing just shy of Alabama's Julius Bor (3:41.11). The pair are now ranked first and second among NCAA Division I competitors. Foster's outstanding run also ranks third in the Nittany Lion record books behind only Steve Balkey (3:38.99), and Larry Mangan (3:39.25). Foster also anchored the Nittany Lions in the 4x800-meter relay, turning in a 1:46.9 split to lead his squad to a winning time of 7:18.72 - the seventh-fastest performance in Penn State history. The quartet (Casimir Loxsom, Lionel Williams, Owen Dawson, and Foster) also set a new Florida Relays meet record, bettering Florida's 7:23.24 from 2002, and also established a new Percy Beard facility record, topping Club West's 7:22.1 from 1972. The selection marks the second Big Ten Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week award for Foster’s career and his first on the season.
Last Penn State Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week: Andrew Riley (April 29, 2009)
Field Athlete of the Week:
Matt McHugh, Illinois
Jr. - Exeter, N.H. - Exeter
For the second straight week, junior Matt McHugh reset his own school record in the hammer throw, winning the event at the Mike Poehlein Invitational with a mark of 202-10 (61.83m). The Exeter, N.H., native improved on his personal best (197-4) from last week's Yellow Jacket Invitational by over five feet, marking the third time he has reset Illinois' top mark in the event. This is the first weekly laurel for McHugh, who becomes Illinois’ first Big Ten Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week since the conference office divided the award into separate categories prior to the 2007 campaign.
Last Illinois Outdoor Athlete of the Week: Abe Jones (May 2, 2006)
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