Mid-American Conference

Male Scholar Athlete of the Week: March 18th – March 24th, 2019
 NIU's Jake Dunham, Baseball (Junior, 3.813, Human Resource Management)
Jake Dunham hit .615 with a home run and four RBI as NIU went 3-1 last week, sweeping a three-game series from Eastern Michigan to open MAC play. The junior was 1-for-1 with an RBI and three walks at Chicago State on March 19. He opened the series with Eastern Michigan going 2-for-4 with a run scored in both Friday’s 6-3 win and Saturday’s 4-3 win. On Sunday, Dunham crushed his second home run of the season to highlight a 3-for-4, three RBI game in which NIU won 9-4. For the week, Dunham had a .684 on-base percentage in four games while slugging .846.
 

Female Scholar Athlete of the Week: March 18th – March 24th, 2019
Eastern Michigan's Delaney Duncan, Swimming (Senior, 3.71, Marketing)
Eastern Michigan senior Delaney Duncan (Galesburg, Ill.-Galesburg) wrapped up her career in style at the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships in Austin, Texas, March 21-23. Duncan etched her spot in history with a runner-up finish in the 100 Breaststroke, as she tapped the wall with a school-record time of 57.83. The mark bested her own school record set at the Mid-American Conference Championships, Feb.28, by more than .4 seconds. The Galesburg, Ill. native finished a mere two seconds behind the American and NCAA record-holder in the stroke, Indiana University's Lilly King, en route to the best finish at the national championships by a female Eagle in program history. For her efforts, she also collected All-American accolades after her preliminary heat performance of 58.55 by almost a full second in her championship heat swim, while also topping her 2018 100 Breast finish by two places and .52 seconds. Furthermore, her effort marked the 10th-best Short Course Yards (SCY) performance in American history in the event. Duncan powered EMU to a 32nd-place finish at the NCAA Championships with 17 points, as she also took part in 200 Breaststroke (19th) and the 200 Individual Medley (58th). Duncan finished her career as an Eagle, leaving behind a legacy unlike any swimmer before her. Some of her top accolades include being the only female Mid-American Conference swimmer to earn the conference's 100 Breast championship in four straight seasons, recording both of the top times in Eastern Michigan history in the 100 and 200 Breast, earning All-American accolades five times in her career, all while being the only Eagle to ever qualify for the NCAA Championships all four years of her career.