WORCESTER, Mass. – Worcester State University’s senior Sam Weeks (Methuen, Mass.) and freshman Eddy Acuna (Newton, Mass.) have been named the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) men’s indoor track & field athletes of the week following impressive performances at the Division III New England Championships on Saturday.
Weeks was named the Field Athlete of the Week after mastering the throwing events at Division III New England’s. He won both the weight throw and shot put (16.08m) to tally 20 points for the Lancers – helping the Lancers to a 9th place finish overall.
“Sam has had an outstanding senior year so far and he improves almost every week,” commented head coach Al Halper. “When he is focused and determined, he is hard to beat.”
Not only did he win both events but also broke a school record in the weight throw - previously marked at 17.93m by teammate Marcus Vieira (Peabody, Mass.) at last week's MASCAC Championships. Weeks recorded a monster-throw of 18.25m in the weight throw to top the record, and currently stands at 4th place nationally in the event.
“He is at his best when the level of competition drives him to the top,” said Haler. “He has been a huge asset to our program as a competitor, team leader, captain and is an extremely respected athlete and individual on and off the field by his teammates.”
Also scoring in the throw events were Vieira and Acuna. Vieira captured 4th place in the weight throw with a distance of 17.07m, while Acuna marked 7th place in the shot put at 14.32m to help him win the MASCAC Co-Rookie of the Week accolade.
“Eddy has made the transition from the high school shot put to the heavier collegiate ball quickly this year and has already seen a lot of success as a freshman,” mentioned Halper. “Placing at the DIII New England's adds to his early college career accomplishments.”
“His determination and work ethic along with the opportunity to train with a very talented group of teammates will hopefully translate into Eddy, over the next few years, being one of the best throwers ever produced at Worcester State,” concluded Halper.