Melgares named Big 12 Cross Country Scholar-Athlete of the Year
IRVING, Texas – Kansas junior Chris Melgares was named the Big 12 Men’s Cross Country Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year the conference announced as it released its 2016 fall sports recipients Thursday. The honor marks the second time a KU cross country runner has won the award after Reid Buchanan took home the honor in 2013. Melgares shared the award with Oklahoma State junior Luis Martinez.
Melgares sports a 3.99 grade point average as an exercise science major at Kansas. The Manhattan, Kan., native is also a two-time Academic All-Big 12 First Team member and was one of KU cross country’s top-two runners in each race he has competed in last season.
In 2016, Melgares helped the KU men to a fourth-place team finish at the Big 12 Championships, posting a career-best 17th-place finish at the race held in Lubbock, Texas. He also notched a 35th-place finish at the NCAA Midwest Regional, aiding his team to an eighth-place finish.
The student-athletes selected for the awards were chosen for their respective sports based on a vote of each sport’s head coaches. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own student-athletes.
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