Bitok Named 2003-04 BIG EAST Male Scholar-Athlete
2/13/2004 3:54:29 PM | Cross Country, Track and Field
Bitok was one of thirteen men chosen by the conference to receive the Male Scholar-Athlete Award. He is a seven-time member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll and a two-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star. Bitok was named to the 2003 Verizon/CoSIDA) Academic All-District First Team. He was selected to the all-academic team by the U.S. Cross Country Coaches Association (USCCCA). Bitok is also the 2003 recipient of the Hisako Fujitsuka Award for Oustanding International Service and Caring, and is a two-time Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar.
Bitok, a bio-chemistry major, was last year’s team MVP after receiving the track & field team’s Most Improved Award in 2002. He was also the top finisher in each cross country race for the Orange in 2001. Also in 2001, he became the first Orangeman to win the University Division of the IC4A Cross Country Championship since 1990 with a time of 25:34. In 2002, Bitok won the Championship Division of the IC4A Cross Country Championship, becoming the first Syracuse runner to do so since 1919.
Aéropostale is the official apparel of the BIG EAST Championships and is the sponsor of the conference’s Post Graduate Student-Athlete Scholarship Program. This year Aéropostale will award 31 scholarships to conference student-athletes to assist in their pursuit of graduate or professional studies.
SU will participate in its final meet before the BIG EAST Tournament on Saturday, Feb. 14, at the Bison Winter Classic, hosted by Bucknell University, in Lewisburg, Pa. Syracuse will host the BIG EAST Indoor Track and Field Championship, February 21-22, at the Carrier Dome. Daily admission for adults costs $5, while admission for children 18-year and younger and senior citizens 55-years and older costs $3. Students from BIG EAST schools will be admitted free with their student ID.
