By: St. John Fisher Athletics
Kyle Rollins of the St. John Fisher College men's track and field team was named NCAA Division III Men National Athlete of the Week by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on Tuesday, Dec. 17.
Rollins, who was awarded Empire 8 Male Field Athlete of the Week on Monday, put the nation on notice with his season debut in the jumping events on Friday at the Houghton December Classic. The junior won both of his events in the High Jump and the Triple Jump while placing high in the national rankings.
The Groveland native cleared 2.07 meters in the high jump, an event Rollins was the National Champion during the outdoor season and the National Runner-Up during the indoor season last year. The mark currently stands alone as the highest leap in all of Division III this year.
In the triple jump, Rollins continued his dominance with a bound of 14.42 meters. The Geneseo High School graduate was more than a meter better than the rest of the competition as he reeled in a pair of victories for the Cardinals. Rollins' impressive jump currently sits third in the national rankings.
The National Athlete of the Week award seeks to highlight not only the very best times, marks and scores on a week-to-week basis, but also performances that were significant on the national landscape and/or the latest in a series of strong outings. Rollins collected E8 Male Track Athlete of the Week last week for winning the 60-meter hurdles with an Atlantic Regional Qualifying time in Fisher's first meet of the season on Dec. 6.
Rollins is Fisher's first track and field athlete to win the National Athlete of the Week award during the indoor season since Kyle Koehler in 2016.