SPARTANBURG, S.C. – ETSU men’s cross country runner Ben Varghese has been named the General Shale Southern Conference Student-Athlete of the Week for all competition between Sept. 18-24.

Varghese claimed his first collegiate win at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational on Friday, Sept. 20. The junior clocked a time of 24:25.9 in the 8k race and was the only runner from a school outside of a Power 5 conference to finish in the top 15. Varghese, who made his season debut, helped guide the team to a third-place finish. His win was the first by a Buccaneer since 2014.

A psychology major, Varghese holds a 3.779 grade point average.

Varghese and the Bucs will be back in action on Saturday, Oct. 5 when they compete at the Louisville Classic.

Also nominated for SoCon Student-Athlete of the Week: Nicolo Dini (Belmont men’s soccer), Maria Contreras (The Citadel women’s soccer), Bailey Gale (Chattanooga women’s soccer), Abigail Veit (Western Carolina women’s soccer) and Riley Coonan (Wofford volleyball).

General Shale SoCon Student-Athletes of the Week
Sept. 4: Isabella Gutierrez, Furman, Women’s Soccer

Sept. 11: Catie Cronister, Wofford, Volleyball

Sept. 18: Regan Ward, Western Carolina, Women’s Soccer

Sept. 25: Ben Varghese, ETSU, Men’s Cross Country

-www.SoConSports.com-