University of Southern Indiana senior distance runner Tyler Pence and McKendree University sophomore thrower Ryan Pearce have been respectively named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week, it was announced Wednesday by the conference office.

Pence won the 5,000 meters at the Bellarmine Classic this past Saturday morning in 14 minutes, 8.98 seconds.  His time ranks second in the GLVC this season and 13th among all NCAA Division II runners.

The Springfield, Illinois native earns his first outdoor accolade since April 23, 2015, and makes it back-to-back winners for the Screaming Eagles as teammate Johnnie Guy was recognized last week.

Pearce threw for three personal bests this past Friday at the University of Florida’s Tom Jones Invitational, scoring in all three events. He finished third in the shot put (16.68m) to rank first in the GLVC and 21st in NCAA II.  Pearce went on to finish seventh in the discus (48m) to rank second among conference throwers, and sixth in the javelin (51.23m) for fourth place on the conference charts.  

The Villa Grove, Illinois native garners his first career weekly award for the outdoor season.