Jan. 31, 2001

Ryan Finley, a member of South Dakota men's track and field teams was named the North Central Conference men's Track Athlete of the Week, according to an announcement, Monday, Jan. 31, by the league office.

Finley, a native of Omaha, Neb., finished fifth in the 400-meters at the Country Gold Classic in Minneapolis (Jan. 26-27), clocking a time of: 48.97. Finley's time is the fastest this season the NCC and sixth best in NCAA Division II. He was also part of a 4x400-meter squad that ran the fastest time in the NCC and the second best time in NCAA Division II this indoor season. The Country Gold Classic included several NCAA Division I track and field schools such as BYU, Minnesota, Texas-Arlington, Iowa and Marquette, along with NCAA Division II schools South Dakota and North Dakota, among others.