EVANSVILLE, Ind.—University of Southern Indiana men's track and field junior Dustin Emerick has been named the NCAA Division II Midwest Region Track Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Emerick, who was named to the inaugural USTFCCCA All-Midwest Region team in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters earlier in the week, is the first USI men's runner to earn Track Athlete of the Year honors at the regional level since Paul Jellema in 2007 and just the second in the program's history—USI and GLVC Hall of Fame member Elly Rono earned Great Lakes Region Cross Country Runner of the Year honors in 1996 and 1997.

Earlier this season, Emerick broke Rono's 13-year old school-record in the 10,000 meters when he finished fifth at the Mt. SAC Relays with a time of 28 minutes, 41.62 seconds. His time was the ninth fastest in NCAA II history and currently ranks second in the nation heading into the NCAA II Outdoor Championships.

In addition to the 10,000 meters, Emerick also ranks eighth in the nation in the 5,000 meters after finishing second at the Stanford Invitational with a time of 14 minutes, 11.55 seconds.

Emerick, who will be named first-team All-Great Lakes Valley Conference when the teams are announced, won the conference title in the 5,000 meters and was third in the 1,500 meters at the GLVC Outdoor Championships earlier this month.

“Dustin is very deserving of this honor as he has worked incredibly hard to get to this level,” USI Head Coach Mike Hillyard said. “We are fortunate to have a student-athlete of Dustin's caliber representing the University of Southern Indiana.”

Emerick, along with sophomore Michael Callison and junior Jackie Henderson, returns to action May 26-28 at the NCAA II Outdoor Championships in Turlock, California.