NEW ORLEANS, La. - The United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced its NCAA Cross Country National Athletes of the Week Tuesday, Nov. 10, with Aubrie Fisher and Joe Freiburger representing Wartburg College.

Fisher (So., Ackley) and Freiburger (Sr., Holy Cross) are coming off MVP performances the American Rivers Conference Championships over the weekend, helping the Knights defend their team titles, the 17th in program history on each the men's and women's side. The duo was also named the A-R-C Athletes of the Week.

While earning her first career A-R-C Runner of the Week and Athlete of the Week honors, Fisher claimed the A-R-C individual title with a six-kilometer time of 21:56.85, defeating the runner-up be nearly seven seconds. The USTFCCCA award is her second of the season and career. 

Freiburger won his second-straight MVP and first place finish at the A-R-C Championships, winning the 8k race with a time of 25:38.54 and leading the Knights to their third consecutive conference championship.

Now a four-time USTFCCCA Men's Division III Athlete of the Week award winner, Freiburger went undefeated in 2020, winning a total of five races as Wartburg was unbeaten as a team as well. The fourth weekly accolade this season is the most for Division III male athletes in the USTFCCCA award's history. On Sept. 20, 2020, Freiburger became the first Knight in Wartburg men's cross country history to garner the USTFCCCA National Weekly Honor. He also swept the A-R-C Runner of the Week awards in 2020, receiving the honor each week, six times in 2020 for a total of nine in his career.

National Athlete of the Week is an award selected and presented by the USTFCCCA Communications Staff at the beginning of each week to 12 collegiate cross country athletes, when applicable (male and female for each of the three NCAA divisions and three NJCAA divisions).