On Monday, senior Jason Bialka will attempt to be the first runner in 24 years to earn All-American honors at the NCAA cross country championships in Greenville, S.C.

In 1977, Eastern won the Division II national championship where Joe Sheeran finished second. The NCAA sent the top five finishers from the Division II race to compete at the Division I level, where Sheeran finished 18th overall.

“He’s the only Division I All-American we’ve had,” head coach John McInerney said. “He’s been our most decorated athlete before Jason.”

Bialka’s fifth-place finish at the Midwest Regional race Saturday gave him an individual qualification to the national competition for the second time in his career, earning him this week’s Top Cat athlete of the week honors.

“He has an extra year of confidence and 12 more month of training,” McInerney said. “He’s one of the most competitive and intense guys we’ve had. He just loves to compete.

“The national meet is the ultimate test for a cross country guy.”

Last year Bialka’s fifth-place finish sent him to Ames, Iowa where stepped to the line, hoping for a top 50 finish.

But with the wind chill below 16 degrees, Bialka finished 229th with a time of 33:15.

“I’ve already checked the weather in South Carolina and it’s supposed to be right around 70 degrees,” Bialka said. “I’m not going to have the problem I had last year.”

But bad luck plagued Bialka Oct. 13 at the Pre-Meet, the same course he will run Monday.