SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Appalachian State’s James Howard-Smith has been named the Southern Conference men’s cross country runner of the week for his performance during the weekend of Sept. 20-22, the league office announced Wednesday.

Howard-Smith earns runner of the week honors after posting a new personal-best time of 25:04 in the 8K race to finish first at the Winthrop Invitational on Saturday. His mark was 43 seconds faster than the time he posted at the 2012 Winthrop Invitational.

The Mountaineers captured first place in the seven-team field, finishing the day with 18 points.

This is Howard-Smith’s second runner of the week award in 2013. The senior from Charlottesville, Va., also won the award for the weekend of Aug. 29-31.

Appalachian State returns to action Oct. 4 for the Mountaineer Open in Boone, N.C.