Chelanga Captures Third Sparky

Cast your vote for Best Newcomer today!

Click here for more information on the Best Newcomer nominees

After prevailing in a competitive race (no pun intended) with Mike Brown, Sam Chelanga has earned his second straight Sparky for Best Individual Performance. His dominating victory at the 2009 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championship garnered 48 percent of the fan votes cast on LibertyFlames.com.

The redshirt junior becomes the first athlete ever to win the same Sparky honor in back-to-back years and the first Flame ever to capture three Sparkys during his career. Megan Frazee, Jordan Jenkins and Josh McDougal held the previous record, with two Sparkys apiece.

Voting is now open for Best Newcomer, the third of five award categories in the 2010 Sparkys. The five nominees include freshmen Meghan Burggraf, Evan Gordon, Katrina Johnson, Max McKay and Siim Tuus. For supporting information on each of the nominees, please click here.

Chelanga had endured some close calls during his career, but had not yet captured a NCAA Division I national championship when he toed the starting line for the 2009 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championship, Nov. 23, 2009 in Terre Haute, Ind.

He quickly took control of the race, building a massive 28-second lead by the halfway mark and never looking back. Chelanga finished 25 seconds ahead of runner-up David McNeill of Northern Arizona, a very talented runner who went on to claim a pair of NCAA 5K national titles on the track in 2010. His margin of victory was the largest in the NCAA Division I men's cross country national championship race since 1996.

Moreover, Chelanga's winning 10K time of 28:41.3 shattered the course record by 22 seconds. He also set Liberty and Big South Conference cross country 8K and 10K records, after passing through the 8K pole in 22:47. To revisit LibertyFlames.com's complete coverage of Chelanga's impressive national championship performance, click here.

Liberty fans can now choose the past year's Best Newcomers from among the following five options: Meghan Burggraf (women's track & field), Evan Gordon (men's basketball), Katrina Johnson (softball), Max McKay (golf) and Siim Tuus (men's tennis), each of whom won a freshman/rookie of the year award this past year.

The winner will be determined through fan voting on the Flames Poll, which is located on the right-hand side of LibertyFlames.com.

The poll for Best Newcomer will remain open until July 12, at which time the winner will be announced on LibertyFlames.com and balloting for Best Female Athlete will begin. A full voting schedule appears below.

Nominees for Best Newcomer
Meghan Burggraf (Women's Track & Field)
Evan Gordon (Men's Basketball)
Katrina Johnson (Softball)
Max McKay (Golf)
Siim Tuus (Men's Tennis)

2010 Sparkys Voting Schedule/Results
Biggest Win – Winner: Softball team's 6-4 win at Virginia (March 24, 2010)
Best Individual Performance – Winner: Sam Chelanga's NCAA national cross country championship (Nov. 23, 2009)
Best Newcomer (July 5-12)
Best Female Athlete (July 12-19)
Best Male Athlete (July 19-26)

Year-by-Year Winners of the Sparky for Best Individual Performance
2007: Alex McLean's performance at VMI (40 points, 19 rebounds on Feb. 21, 2007)
2008: Josh McDougal's NCAA national cross country championship (Nov. 19, 2007)
2009: Sam Chelanga's NCAA all-time record in the 10K (27:28.48 on April 24, 2009)
2010: Sam Chelanga's NCAA national cross country championship (Nov. 23, 2009)

Year-by-Year Winners of the Sparky for Best Newcomer
2007: Kallie Corbin (Volleyball)
2008: Jordan Jenkins (Women's Tennis)
2009: Sam Chelanga (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field)