April 8, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.: April 8, 2008 - Thanks to a victory at last weekend's Pepsi Team Challenge at the University of Oregon, freshman standout Samuel Borchers (Yellow Springs, Ohio) has been named Big Ten Athlete of the Week, announced by conference offices on Tuesday.
Borchers ignited the crowd at historic Hayward Field with a blistering finishing kick to take top honors in the men's 800-meters, sprinting past the field to win by over a half a second. Borchers' winning time of 1:49.94 is not only a lifetime best, but also bettered the NCAA regional standard in the event, and currently stands as the top mark in the Big Ten this season. Borchers' performance also helped the Nittany Lions to an impressive second-place finish in a challenging four-team field. Oregon topped the competition with 230 points, followed by Penn State (150), Minnesota (140.5), and Washington (125.5).
Borchers stormed onto the collegiate scene this past indoor season, setting a new school record in the 1,000-meters (2:22.42), and running a 4:01.98 mile to better Nittany Lion legend Greg Fredericks' long-standing Penn State standard of 4:02.3. This week's Big Ten award is the second of Borchers' young career after winning conference honors during the indoor season.
Borchers and the Nittany Lion will head west again this weekend, traveling to the Sun Angel Track Classic at Arizona State University.