Feb. 23, 2009

Stony Brook, N.Y. - In recognition of her two individual titles at the America East Indoor Track & Field Championships this past weekend, sophomore Lucy Van Dalen (Wanganui, New Zealand) has been named the SimplexGrinnell Athlete of the Week. Van Dalen took home gold in both the mile and 1,000-meter races at the Championships, which were held at Boston University.

In her first race of the day, Van Dalen cruised to victory in the mile, posting a time of 4:45.87, almost 11 seconds faster than the second-place runner. She followed that performance up by setting a new America East Championship record in the 1,000-meter, crossing in 2:48.02.

Van Dalen's fastest time in the mile of 4:40.26, which she ran on February 7th, is currently the 12th fastest time in the country. The top 16 times will be invited to the NCAA Championships, which would be a first in Stony Brook school history.