Kelati Earns Second Straight MW XC Athlete of the Week Award
MW RELEASE
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— For the second time this season, New Mexico junior Weini Kelati has been selected as the Mountain West Peak Athlete Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week by the conference.
Kelati’s honor comes after another impressive performance for the Lobo runner, in which she finished second at the prestigious Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, running in the front pack and holding a lead for a portion of the race. The Lobo was sitting in fourth at the 2K split before she made her move in to the lead at the halfway point of the 6K race, which she led through the 4K split. She then was passed by a push from Alicia Monson of Wisconsin, finishing runner-up after crossing the line at 19:48.6. It was Kelati’s second runner-up finish at the meet after finishing second to Monson last year.
She led the Lobos for the second straight meet as UNM ran against 19 ranked team, five in the top 10, and four teams that were receiving votes, including the No. 1 team in the country, Arkansas.
In addition, her second-place result continues her streak of never finishing lower than second in a race in seven races over the last two years with four individual wins and three runner-up results. This season, Kelati won the individual title in the Blue Division at the Joe Piane – Notre Dame Invitational and as a result was named the USTFCCCA NCAA DI National Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week as well as the MW Athlete of the Week on Oct. 8.
Tuesday’s announcement marks the second of the season for Kelati, with the runner winning the conference award following each race she has run in this season, and the fourth of her career.
Up next for Kelati and the Lobos is the Mountain West Cross Country Championships in Logan, Utah on Nov. 1. Kelati enters the championships having won the MW individual title last year with a time of 19:49.3 and was named the Mountain West Women’s Student-Athlete of the Year.
2019 Mountain West Cross Country Athletes of the Week
Women’s Athlete of the Week
Oct. 22 – WeiniKelati, New Mexico
Oct. 8 – WeiniKelati, New Mexico
Oct. 1 – Mica Rivera, Utah State
Sept. 10 – Lily Tomasula-Martin, Air Force
Sept. 3 – Katie Struthers-Haviland, Utah State