New Jersey City University Athletics

Freshman BRIAN BUCKNOR (Irvington, NJ/St. Benedict’s Prep) is the NJCU Men's Athlete of the Week for the third time this season, after excelling at the 2009 Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Championship and being named the New Jersey Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week for week nine of the 2009 season.

 

Bucknor, who also was the NJAC Rookie of the Week in week three of the season on April 6, earned All-ECAC honors in the 400-meter dash and as the anchor of the 4x400-meter relay team during the 2009 ECAC Championship at Springfield College’s Blake Track in Springfield, MA on May 15. He helped NJCU place 26^th in a field of 56 schools that scored at least one point in the championship field.

 

In the 400-meter dash, Bucknor posted the ninth fastest time in the country this year and solidified his provisional qualification for the 2009 NCAA Championship, timing 48.16 seconds. He placed second of 25 athletes to earn All-ECAC honors in the event and scored eight of NJCU’s 12 team points. He easily surpassed the NCAA standard of 48.50 and was just 5/100^th of a second behind SUNY-Cobleskill sophomore Carlton Wildman at 48.11.

 

Bucknor also anchored the 1600-meter relay team, which placed seventh of 30 teams in 3:19.64, scoring two team points.

Bucknor is one of 17 athletes to qualify for the NCAA championship meet on May 22-23 in Marietta, OH in the 400 meters. If he is one of the top eight in the trials of the event, he will run for the national championship and a shot at All-America honors.