INDIANAPOLIS – Malone collected the second set of Great Midwest Athletic Conference Cross Country Athletes of the Week honors after a strong performance at the Kutztown DII/DIII Challenge.
 
The Pioneers swept both team titles out in Pennsylvania in their second meet of the fall season.
 
Malone’s women is currently ranked 24th nationally and seventh in the Midwest Region by the USTFCCCA. The MU men are slotted at ninth in the Midwest Region.
 
New regional and national rankings by the organization will be released early this week on Tuesday and Wednesday.
 
Men’s Athlete of the Week
Lucas Clark
Malone
Sophomore
Smithville, OH (Smithville HS)
 
Clark was less than one second from being the first to cross the finish tape at the DII/DIII Challenge hosted by Kutztown University.
 
The sophomore was the runner-up in the 8K event and the featured contributor to the Pioneers’ team victory with a time of 25:54.40.
 
Clark was one of three Pioneers in the top 10, joining the Chaplik brothers (Noah and Nick), who finished fifth and sixth, respectively.
 
Malone edged out Southern Connecticut State for the team win with 13 schools competing. There were also 133 total runners entered in the race.
 
Women’s Athlete of the Week
Hannah Thompson
Malone
RS Senior
Canton, OH (GlenOak HS)
 
Thompson has a decorated resume from her time in the league, including all-conference status in track and field while qualifying indoor and outdoor nationals.
 
After taking a year off to redshirt, the senior continued her success and impressed while leading her team to victory at the DII/DIII Challenge hosted by Kutztown University.
 
Thompson won the 6K race by nearly three seconds with a time of 22:25.10. There were nearly 160 runners in the field and 13 schools officially counted team scores.
 
The Pioneers beat out Stonehill for the team victory, clocking a total time of 1:56.52 and averaging 23:22 per counted race. Malone finished with 41 points in the scoring.