ST. PAUL, Minn. - Silas Ebeling's performance at the Running of the Cows (Pre-Nationals) meet on Saturday has earned him the UMAC men's cross country athlete of the week honor, the conference announced Tuesday morning.

Ebeling and the Knights competed in the Maize division, which consisted of 20 teams and 326 runners. The senior clocked a season-best time of 26:37.0 and a 17th-place finish, leading MLC to a 12th-place team finish. The Knights also finished first out of four UMAC teams at the event.

"Silas' performance at Carleton was exceptional," coach Mark Weinkauf said. "He's a hard worker in practice and a great leader on the team. This is well-deserved recognition."

Ebeling shaved an incredible 39.9 seconds off his time from the St. Olaf Invitational just two weeks ago as well as shaving nearly three minutes off his time from the UWRF River Town Invitational back on Sept. 4.

"His progress through the first three races shows he's using his God-given gifts to the best of his abilities," Weinkauf said. 

It is the third time this season that an MLC runner has been recognized as athlete of the week. Logan Korthals and Jemimah Habben swept the men's and women's honors on Sept. 9.