East Michigan News

Eastern Michigan University's Lachlan Cornelius has been named the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Men's Track Athlete of the Week. The prestigious recognition was announced on Tuesday, April 29, following Cornelius' outstanding performance at the GVSU Extra Weekend Meet held on April 26 at Grand Valley State University.

Cornelius, a student-athlete from Brisbane, Australia, delivered a remarkable achievement by winning the 800-meter invitational. He completed the race in 1:48.38, setting a personal and MAC season-best time. This achievement is notable as it is the fastest time recorded by an Eastern Michigan student-athlete in nearly three decades. It is also only surpassed in program history by the performance of Eastern Michigan legend and former Olympian Paul McMullen, who clocked 1:46.48 in 1995.

"His time currently ranks sixth in the Great Lakes Region," noted a statement, "and 43rd on the East Qualifying List." Cornelius improved his previous conference-best mark of 1:49.25 by almost one full second.

This recognition marks the third time this outdoor season that an Eastern Michigan athlete has secured the award, taking the team's total to six for the 2024-25 campaign. Previous recipients included Gabe Singh from Toledo, Ohio, and Saraiah Walkes from Manatee County, Florida, who were honored on April 15. Lucky Fiaku and Josephine Oloye received accolades in the indoor season on December 10, followed by Carson McCoy on February 11.

Eastern Michigan's track team will be participating in two upcoming meets. They are scheduled to compete at the Jesse Owens Invitational, hosted by Ohio State University in Columbus, on May 2-3 and the Duke Twilight Meet at Duke University's Morris Williams Track & Field Stadium in Durham, North Carolina, on May 4.

For more information and updates on Eastern Michigan University cross country and track and field, fans are encouraged to check EMUEagles.com and follow the team on social media platforms Instagram, X, and Facebook under @EMUXC_TF.