SoCon XC athletes of the week announced

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Furman’s Albert Velikonja and Tessa Walter have been named the Southern Conference Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week, respectively, following all competition held October 15-21. 

The Paladins closed out the regular season with a visit to Wisconsin for the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational. The Furman squads each placed 26^th in their respective fields, but this week’s honorees both had strong performances among a national caliber field.  

Walter placed 32^nd with a time of 20:28.4 to claim her third weekly honor of the season. The Paladin newcomer has the top 6k time in the conference this season. The Furman women are 13^th in the USTFCCCA’s latest southeast regional poll. 

Velikonja placed 37^th with a time of 23:52.1 in the men’s 8k to lead the Furman men. The Furman graduate student and teammates are currently ranked seventh in the southeast region by USTFCCCA.  

Furman will now look to defend their team title at the 2025 Ingles Southern Conference Championship on November 1. 

2025 Southern Conference Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week  

Sept. 3 - Chris Knight, Furman 

Sept. 10 - No Competition 

 Sept. 17 - Jason Bowers, ETSU  

Sept. 24 - Jason Bowers, ETSU 

Oct. 1 - Chris Knight, Furman 

Oct. 8 - Jason Bowers, ETSU  

Oct. 15 – No Nominations 

Oct. 22 – Albert Velikonja, Furman 

2025 Southern Conference Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week  

Sept. 3 -  Tessa Walter, Furman 

Sept. 10 - No Competition  

Sept. 17 - Nichole Harris, Mercer 

Sept. 24 - Julia Visgueiro, ETSU  

Oct. 1 - Tessa Walter, Furman 

Oct. 8 – Mary Grace Parker, Mercer 

Oct. 15 – Kate Bannigan, Furman 

Oct. 22 – Tessa Walter, Furman