CULLOWHEE, N.C. – It didn't take long for Western Carolina's CJ McFerrin to hurdle his way to a premier spot in the school's record book and now he has been named the Southern Conference's Track Athlete of the Week after his performance at the Clemson Invite.

McFerrin, a junior transfer, made his Western Carolina debut by posting a time of 8.15 in the preliminary round of the 60-meter hurdles before he achieved his blistering time of 7.95 in the 60m hurdle finals. That mark is one of only two sub-8-second times in the SoCon so far this season and stands as the second-fastest time in Western Carolina history.

The Alpharetta, Ga., product wasn't done there, though, as he would go on to post a personal best in the 200-meter dash as well with a time of 22.87, which stands just shy of a Top Ten mark in the conference this season.  

The SoCon Track Athlete of the Week accolade is McFerrin's first and the first for Western Carolina this season. The last Catamount to earn either weekly honor from the SoCon was Noah Straley who was named Field Athlete of the Week last February. It's WCU's first Track Athlete of the Week award since Chace Washington-Saunders earned the award in 2019.  

McFerrin and the Western Carolina track and field teams will be back in action this weekend at the Brant Tolsma Invitational, hosted by Liberty in Lynchburg, Va.

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