MASON CITY – NIACC sophomore Melvin Kipkemboi picked up a pair of weekly awards for the week of Oct. 4-10.
Kipkemboi was selected as the ICCAC Division II men’s cross country athlete of the week and was also selected as the NJCAA Division II men’s runner of the week. It was the fifth time in his career and second time this season that Kipkemboi was the ICCAC winner of the weekly award and the third time in his career and second time this season he has won the NJCAA weekly award.
Last Friday, Kipkemboi won the fifth annual Trent Smith Invitational in a time of 25 minutes, 22 seconds on the 8-kilometer course on the NIACC campus. Kipkemboi’s 25:22 was the second fastest time in the meet’s history.
Kipkemboi was the third NIACC runner to win the Trent Smith Invitational in its five-year history. NIACC’s Brian Jacques won the meet in 2017 and Abdiaziz Wako was the individual champion in 2018.
No. 9 NIACC returns to action Friday at the Indian Hills Invitational.