DENVER UTEPs Dirk de Heer and Corine van Beek have been named the Western Athletic Conference mens and womens cross country Athletes of the Week, respectively.
de Heer, a junior from Groningen, The Netherlands, won his first collegiate cross country race, taking the title at the Kachina Classic in Las Cruces, N.M. de Heer won the 8k event by two seconds over Fil Apodace, finishing with a time of 23:47. UTEP finished first with 19 points.
van Beek, a junior from Ermelo, The Netherlands, was the first collegiate finisher and second overall finisher at the Kachina Classic. van Beek finished with a time of 18:41 in the 6k race. She helped the Miners to second-place, 38-point performance.
Additional mens nominees included; Mindi Pukstas, SMU; Forest Braden, Boise State
Additional womens nominees included: Victoria Chang, Hawaii; Robin Wemple, Boise State; Karin van Rooyen, SMU.