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O’Brien Earns ECAC Athlete of the Week Award
American junior notches men’s track honor

March 27, 2002

Junior Sean O'Brien won the mile at the VCU Rams Invitaitonal in the second fastest time in school history.

WASHINGTON — American University junior Sean O’Brien (Tewksbury, Mass./Winnisquam Regional) was honored by the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) today as men’s track Athlete of the Week following his performance at the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams Invitational.

O’Brien won the men’s invitational mile at the meet by just over a second in an IC4A qualifying time of 4:06.34. His time is the second fastest ever run in American outdoor track behind his own school-record of 4:04.47 run at last year’s Penn Relays. O’Brien is off to a good start as he looks to return to the NCAA Championships in the 1,500-meters were he earned All-America honors last season.

O’Brien is coming off of a very successful indoor season in which he established a new American University record in the mile in a NCAA provisional qualifying time of 4:02.00. He also won the Patriot League Championships in the mile in February. In addition, O’Brien was a part of the distance medley relay that established two school records and the school-record holding 4x800-meter relay team that was victorious at the Patriot League meet.

O’Brien and the rest of the American track team return to action on April 6 at the Maryland Invitational.

American University is in its inaugural year as a member of the Patriot League. The University, founded in 1893, fields a 19-sport Division I athletics program, featuring 10 women’s sports and nine for men.