Indianapolis – Milwaukee junior Marquis Johnson (Lac Du Flambeau, Wis.) and sophomore Kate Novacek (Waukesha, Wis.) have been named Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Runners of the Week while Milwaukee senior Alex Chollet (Aurora, Ill.) and Valparaiso senior Sarah Peters (LaGrange, Ill.) have been named Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Athletes of the Week for the period of March 16-22.

Johnson opened the outdoor season with first-place finishes in two events at the Billiken Kickoff in St. Louis, Mo. He won the 200-meter dash with a time of :21.54, topping 22 other competitors, and also won the 400-meter dash with a time of :47.66. He broke meet records in both events, including the facility record in the 400-meter. Both times are also top in the Horizon League this season.

Novacek ran a personal best :56.55 to win the women’s 400-meter dash at the Billiken Kickoff. The time is the eighth fastest in Milwaukee history. She also competed on UWM’s winning 4x400 meter relay team as well as the 4x100 meter relay team which place second at the meet. Both relays just missed ranking top-five in school history.

Chollet won all three throwing events at the Billiken Kickoff, setting meet records in each event. He won the shot put with a throw of 15.21 meters, the hammer throw with a distance of 53.40 meters and the discus with a throw of 47.76 meters. The hammer throw set a facility record, while his shot put mark stands ninth in school history.

Peters topped the field in the pole vault event at the Gene & Rose Edmonds Invitational to claim women’s field athlete of the week honors. The senior won with a League-best distance of 3.48 meters, out-vaulting the field by .45 meters. Her jumps is the top vault in the Horizon League this season by .28 meters.

Top Runners of the Week:
Brittany Bailey, Wright State (Jr., Botkins, Ohio) – Bailey won the B-Section 1500m run at the Wake Forest Open, besting the other 56 competitors with a winning time of 4:47.31.
Matt Kubik, UIC (Sr., Carol Stream, Ill.) – Kubik finished third in the 100m dash at the Butler Open with a time of :11.10 and fifth in the 200m dash (22.17).
Mark Pinnow, Valparaiso (So., Columbus, Ind.) – Pinnow finished second in the 100m hurdles (18.23) and fourth in the 400m hurdles (1:03.52) at the Gene & Rose Edmonds Invitational.
Hannah Reynard, Valparaiso (Fr., Jackson, Mich.) – Reynard won the 400m hurdles with a time of 1:05.11 and placed second in the 100m hurdles (16.94) at the Gene & Rose Edmonds Invitational.
Brittany Schwarz, UIC (So., Dixon, Ill.) – Schwarz finished sixth out of 25 competitors in the 1500m run with a time of 4:47.40

Top Athletes of the Week:
Courtney Ballard, Wright State (Jr., Huber Heights, Ohio) – Ballard won the women’s pole vault at the Wake Forest Open with a jump of 3.20m.
Luke Taccola, UIC (Fr., Oak Forest, Ill.) – Taccola won the shot put at the Butler Open with a throw of 14.47 meters.
Justin Zosso, Valparaiso (So., Chesterton, Ind.) – Zosso won the Pole Vault at the Gene & Rose Edmonds Invitational with a school-record jump of 4.95m.