Mead, Alford-Sullivan Earn Big Ten Honors

Gopher cross country star Hassan Mead and Minnesota native Beth Alford-Sullivan earned Big Ten accolades yesterday: Mead was named men's Cross Country Athlete of the Year, while Sullivan, the head coach at Penn State, earned women's Coach of the Year honors.

Mead repeated as Athlete of the Year after winning his second straight Big Ten men's cross country title last weekend. The Minneapolis South alum clocked 25:01 on Penn State's 5.2 mile course for the victory. Mead has earned Big Ten awards in each of his three seasons in the conference -- he was named the Big Ten's Freshman of the Year in 2007.

Alford-Sullivan, a Hopkins High School and University of Minnesota alum, was honored after Penn State swept the women's individual and team crowns at Big Tens. The wins were program-first for Penn State, which is currently ranked #11 in the NCAA Division I poll. Alford-Sullivan is a former University of Minnesota cross country captain.

Read about all the Big Ten cross country award winners HERE.