BENNINGTON, Vt. — The New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) announced its weekly award winners on Monday for the period ending September 27, 2015 with Southern Vermont College junior Justin Ferguson (Broadalbin, N.Y.) once again being named the Men's Cross Country Runner of the Week.

Ferguson finished first for Southern Vermont at Saturday's Purple Valley Classic hosted by Williams College, taking 29 seconds off his time from a week earlier for a season-best mark of 26:52.7. That resulted in the junior posting a split time of 5:25 per mile on the 8k course and being honored with the Conference laurel for the third time this season.

The Mountaineer was joined in receiving league accolades by classmate and captain Shelby Whitman (Bennington, Vt.) who was donned with the NECC Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week award. She crossed the line second for the SVC women's side on Saturday, placing 15th overall in a tough field at the Purple Valley Classic. The junior captain took 1:47 off of her time from a week earlier to put up a season-best mark of 21:23.4 (6:54/mile) on the 5k course. This is her second NECC Runner of the Week honor this season and sixth in her Southern Vermont career.

Ferguson and the men's team is back in action on Saturday when they head to the Keene State College Invitational, an 8k scheduled to start at 11:45 a.m.