NEW YORK—Sophomore jumper Malik Cunningham (St. Andrew, Jamaica) was named the BIG EAST Men's Field Athlete of the Week for the second time this season in an announcement made by the conference office on Wednesday afternoon.  Cunningham competed in the triple jump at the Columbia Challenge last weekend and recorded a collegiate personal best at the meet. 
 
This is the first time that Villanova has had a field athlete earn BIG EAST weekly honors twice in the same season.  Cunningham previously earned the distinction after his performance at the season-opening Great Dane Classic earlier this month.  The second-year member of the Wildcats roster currently leads the BIG EAST and is tied for 40^th nationally in the triple jump with a mark of 15.43 meters. 
 
Cunningham came in second at the Columbia Challenge with that mark last week, which was two centimeters better than his previous collegiate best of 15.41 meters recorded as a freshman last year.  It is the longest triple jump by any Villanova athlete in at least the past 20 seasons based on available records.  Cunningham ranks third on the Wildcats all-time performance list in the triple jump and scored in the event at the BIG EAST Championships both indoors and outdoors last season. 
 
Villanova continues the indoor season when it hosts the Villanova Invitational this Saturday at Ocean Breeze Track & Field Athletic Complex in Staten Island, N.Y.