A new category of excellence has been created in Mid-Contintent Conference sports and before it even had a chance to settle in, a Huskie has already been awarded it.

Just two weeks old, the honor of Mid-Con Swimmer of the Week was given to NIU swimmer Mark Oostman.

Though the Huskies split two meets within the course of 22 hours on the weekend of Jan. 17 and 18, Oostman came through with an outstanding performance.

In a 133-99 losing effort to the Fightin‘ Irish of Notre Dame, the Naperville native took first place in the 200-yard breast stroke with a time of 2:11.47, an NIU season best. Along with that, he took second place in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:00.06, another school season best. Finally, Oostman, a junior helped his 400-yard medley relay teammates Art Sanchez, Tom Marchertas and Craig Hammett to a second- place finish with a time of 3:39.42.

The next day, his consistency continued in NIU’s 137-97 victory over Northern Iowa. The Huskie swimmer took first place in two of the three events he participated in. Again, he boosted the 400-yard medley relay team to a first place finish with a time of 3:40.76. Oostman also won the 100-yard breast stroke with a time of 1:01.20.

There’s a sign on the locker room door that states NIU’s team goals, and the NIU swimming team has been nothing but that—a team. Mark Oostman has contributed greatly to that team, and has received a well-deserved award for it.