Clinton, Miss — Cross Country runners Jan Lukas Becker and Lauren Wallace were named this week's Mississippi College Student-Athletes of the Week Presented by Performance Therapy.

Competing in the NCAA Division II Cross Country South Region Championships, both Becker and Wallace stood out for the men's and women's teams, helping them qualify for the Division II Cross Country National Championships.  

Becker was the leader for the men's team, posting a time of 29:27 in the 9.8k and becoming the first back-to-back South Region Champion since Tony Farris in 1982-83.  The senior from Saarbuecken, Germany led the Choctaws to a third-place overall finish.

Wallace set a new school record with her time of 20:40.6 in the 6k, leading the women's team to a second-place overall finish and helping to set a new record team average of 21:17 in the 6k.  Wallace also became the first South Region runner-up in the history of the women's program at Mississippi College.

The Choctaws now set their sights on the 2023 National Cross Country Championships scheduled for Saturday, November 18, in Joplin, Missouri.