West Alabama junior Polina Babkina was tabbed the Gulf South Conference Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week.
Babkina turned in a record-breaking performance en route to her first-ever honor. The Sochi, Russia native ran for a sixth-place finish at the Gulf Coast Stampede in Pensacola, FL thanks to a school-record, 5K time of 18:33.20. The junior topped her previous personal-best by 31 seconds and she was the GSC’s top finisher in the 122-runner meet. Babkina’s efforts also helped guide the Tigers to a fifth-place team finish.