College basketball brackets revealed

The NCAA men’s basketball championship brackets were revealed on Sunday afternoon and that means the beginning of  March Madness. Millions of people in the US will now start to take part in bracket pools in the hopes of proving they have top knowledge of the sport.

It’s been a busy day in women’s college basketball as well as conferences finished up post season tournaments and more teams learned that their season is not over. Here’s a list of who earned automatic bids to the to the 2010 NCAA women’s college basketball tournament:

TEAM -CONFERENCE -DATE -LAST BID
—- ———- —- ——–
East Tennessee State (23-8) Atlantic Sun 3/6 2009
Austin Peay (15-17) Ohio Valley 3/6 2009
Princeton (26-2) Ivy League 3/6 none
Marist (26-7) Metro Atlantic Athletic 3/7 2009
Duke (27-5) Atlantic Coast 3/7 2009
Ohio State (30-4) Big Ten 3/7 2009
Tennessee (30-2) Southeastern 3/7 2009
Gonzaga (27-4) West Coast 3/8 2009
Chattanooga (24-8) Southern 3/8 2008
Xavier (27-3) Atlantic 10 3/8 2009
Middle Tennessee (25-5) Sun Belt 3/9 2009
South Dakota State (22-10) Summit League 3/9 2009
Connecticut (33-0) Big East 3/9 2009
Tulane (26-6) Conference USA 3/12 2002
Lamar (26-7) Southland 3/12 1991
Bowling Green (27-6) Mid-American 3/13 2007
UC Riverside (17-15) Big West 3/13 2007
Louisiana Tech (23-8) Western Athletic 3/13 2006
San Diego State (21-10) Mountain West 3/13 2009
Hampton (20-11) Mid-Eastern Athletic 3/13 2004
Portland State (18-14) Big Sky 3/13 none
Lehigh (29-3) Patriot League 3/13 2009
Southern (23-8) Southwestern Athletic 3/13 2006
Vermont (26-6) America East 3/13 2009
James Madison (26-6) Colonial Athletic 3/14 2007
Cleveland State (19-13) Horizon League 3/14 2008
Texas A&M (25-7) Big 12 3/14 2009
Liberty (27-5) Big South 3/14 2009
St. Francis, Pa. (17-14) Northeast 3/14 2005
Northern Iowa (17-15) Missouri Valley 3/14 none
Stanford (31-1) Pacific-10 3/14 2009

UNC soccer player takes top national honors

Whitney Engen, a senior at North Carolina, has won the 2010 Honda Sports Award in soccer, designating her as the nation’s top collegiate female athlete in that sport. The honor was based on the results of national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member schools as part of the Collegiate Women Sports Awards program, now in its 34th year.

“To end our season with a championship and then win the Honda Sports Award is beyond my wildest dreams,” Engen said. “I was really shocked when I heard the news.”

Engen’s win marks the 11th time that a University of North Carolina soccer player has been honored with the award.

Honda Award winners are selected in each of the 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports . Three other athletes are honored as the Division II Athlete of the Year, Division III Athlete of the Year and Inspiration Award winner. Each woman is selected not only for her superior athletic skills, but also for her leadership abilities, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service.

At the end of the year, one deserving athlete will be chosen as the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and receive the coveted Honda-Broderick Cup. Past winners of this prestigious award include Jackie Joyner and Mia Hamm. In 2009, the honor went to gymnastics star Courtney Kupets of the University of Georgia.

Other winners for this year’s award include Angela Bizzari (University of Illinois) for cross-country and Katie O’Donnell (University of Maryland) for field hockey.

UCLA Stanford; UNC Notre Dame today

The College Cup is on.

The Pac-10 squads #1 Stanford vs. #3 UCLA face off in the NCAA semifinals today on national television at 2:30 p.m. PT/5:30 p.m. ET.

Following the UCLA Stanford game, #2 North Carolina takes on #4 Notre Dame. Atlantic Coast Conference champion Tar Heels and Fighting Irish will square off at 5:00 p.m. PT/8:00 p.m. ET.

The winners move on to the championship on Sunday. If you’re not in College Station, Texas to watch the games live, be sure to catch both matches on ESPN2.

The championship game will take place Sunday at 10:00 a.m.

Yesterday was Media Day and last night, all the players attended a banquet at A&M. For a peek at the UCLA women all dressed up for the big event – go to the NCAA College Cup Banquet Gallery

NCAA Website: Women’s College Cup Central
UCLA Website: Bruins Women’s Soccer
Stanford Website: Cardinal Women’s Soccer
UNC Website: Tar Heel Women’s Soccer
Notre Dame Website: Irish Women’s Soccer

On to the College Cup

While many sports fans in Los Angeles were at the Coliseum Saturday night for the UCLA – USC football game, it was a great night at Drake Stadium where the UCLA women  came back from an early Portland goal to win the NCAA quarterfinal soccer  game 2-1.

With the win last night, the Bruins advanced to their seventh consecutive NCAA Women’s College Cup. And, for the first time since 1986, the previous year’s field returns intact. The only difference this weekend, 12 months after North Carolina beat Stanford and Notre Dame beat UCLA in the 2008 semifinals, is the draw: Stanford and UCLA meet in a Pac-10 rematch and North Carolina and Notre Dame meet in a rematch of both last season’s championship game and a 6-0 win for the Tar Heels in South Bend three months ago.

One of the constants for the Bruins over the last four years has been the stellar play of forward Lauren Cheney. Cheney and sophomore forward Sydney Leroux are part of a potent offense that is averaging 2.91 goals per game (10th in nation). Both players have scored over 40 points this season, becoming the first UCLA tandem to accomplish the feat. They have combined for 85 of 195 of the team’s points, or 43.5 percent of UCLA’s scoring.

The finals will be played next weekend in College Station, Texas.

Check out this video recap of the UCLA-Portland game with former Bruin all-star Jill Oakes.  Note we missed the early Portland goal – which happened about 2 minutes into the game (sorry, we were still setting up) but you’ll see lots of great action by two of the top collegiate teams.

Sweet 16 round of NCAA Women’s Soccer tournament and Elite 8 predictions

The third round of the NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament was played, and it came down to eight teams still standing strong. Stanford knocked out Santa Clara on a direct free kick earned in the 38^th minute. Sophmore Teresa  Noyola scored the goal headed to the top right of the goal, which was only tipped by Bronco goalkeeper Bianca Henninger off the inside of the crossbar.

Boston defeated Wisconsin 1-0, and is in the Elite 8 for the first time in program history. Victioria DiMartino collided with a Wisconsin defender, but Brooke Knowlton picked up the loose ball and ripped a shot to the upper left corner from 22 yards out to score the lone goal in the 68^th minute.

Portland got through Virginia Tech with a rousing 4-1 win to get into the quarterfinals. Danielle Foxhoven gave Kendra Chandoke at the top of the 18. Chandhoke finished it and scored the first goal of the match in just the 4^th minute (also the first shot on goal for the Pilots). Virgina Tech scored just 2 minutes later when Julian Johnson received a pass from Robin Chidester. Johnson, with her back to the goal, turned quickly and blasted a shot to the far post past the Portland goalkeeper, Kelsey Davis. The Pilots responded with 3 more goals in the half. In the 10^th minute, Chandoke scored her second goal when a VA Tech defender tried to clear a rebound off goalkeeper Kristin Carden, but Chandoke charged her and knocked the ball into the goal. Four minutes later, Chandoke slotted a pass to Foxhoven who went 1-on-1 with Cardin. Foxhoven finished to the left post and scored her 24^th goal for the Pilots this year. Chandoke finished the scoring in the 34^th minute when she one-touched a pass from Sophie Schimdt into the goal for her 9^th goal of the season.

UCLA beat Virginia 3-0 on 2 goals from tournament-leading goal-scorer Sydney Leroux. Dea Cook scored off a corner kick taken by Lauren Barnes in the 4^th minute. Leroux scored before the first half ended in the 42^nd minute with a shot to the left corner of the goal.  She then sealed the win in the 89^th minute when a scramble in the box led to the ball bouncing to her. She got around two defenders and scored her 23^rd goal this year, tying with fellow forward Lauren Cheney.

UNC beat Maryland 1-0 in a very close game. Casey Nogueira blasted a powerful shot that curved away from Terp goalkeeper Mary Casey in the 81^st minute after the Maryland defense gave her time and space to trap and shoot the ball which was thrown in from the left side by Jessica McDonald.

Wake Forest defeated South Carolina in a last-second goal from Bess Harrington to advance to the quarter finals for the first time in program season. “I saw Jill Hutchinson sprinting to get the ball and take the corner,” Harrington said. “I could hear the clock winding down. I was just there and nobody was marking me and she put the ball in a perfect place. As soon as I saw the ball coming to me I said to myself `It’s going in, it’s going in’ and it went in.”

Notre Dame is in the quarter finals for the 6^th straight time, after beating Oregon State 1-0 in a very close game. Melissa Henderson outran a defender on the right side, then got around another at the goal line, and poked a ball across the penalty area, which Rose Augustin.

Florida State moved past Texas A&M in double overtime after the two played to a 1-1 tie. Jessica Price would get her 3 game-winning goal in the post season after she collected a pass from Tiffany McCarty and was able to get around 3 defenders and slot a low shot into the goal.

Quarterfinals schedule:

Stanford will face-off against Boston College on Friday at 7pm PT at Stanford, and has already sold out.

-Stanford

Portland will come down to play against UCLA on Saturday at 5pm PT.

-This will be a close game I think, but I’m going with UCLA on this one.

North Carolina will play Wake Forest on Friday at 2pm ET.

-UNC is a tough team to break down, and they play with a high backline. They will take this one.

Notre Dame vs Florida State on Friday at 2pm ET also.

-I’m giving the edge to Notre Dame.

NCAA Division 1 Women’s Soccer- Round 2 Results, Sweet 16 predictions

The second round of the NCAA tournament was played this weekend, with maybe 3 upsets in between, but 1 HUGE upset. Here are the results:

1. Stanford 2, BYU0
2. Oklahoma St 1 (5), Santa Clara 1 (6)
3. UCF 0, Wisconsin 1
4. Connecticut 0, Boston College 2
5. Portland 2, Washington 1
6. Dayton 1, Virginia Tech 3
7. Penn St 2, Virgina 6
8. San Diego St 0, UCLA 5
9. North Carolina 4, Georgia 0
10. Washington St 0, Maryland 1
11. Wake Forest 3, West Virginia 0
12. Rutgers 0, South Carolina 1
13. Notre Dame 6, Central Michigan 1
14. Oregon St 1, Florida 0
15. LSU 1 (2), Texas A&M 1 (4)
16. Cal 0, Florida St 3

UCF v Wisconsin: UCF was seeded 3rd and was definitely a team that could make it to the quarter finals for sure, but they ended up losing in just the second round of the NCAA tournament. Wisconsin, who had defeated Arizona State in the first round, dominated the game. With 21 seconds left in the first half, Roxanne Carlson came into the game. She sprinted down the field to catch up to a low Laurie Nosbusch pass, and slotted a shot to the near post. It was the only goal Wisconsin needed to knock out the 13th-ranked UCF Knights, and get into the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1993.

Penn St v Virginia: The biggest upset so far in the tournament. Penn State, another seeded team (4th), was leading 2-0 and they seemed to get comfortable with that lead so they sat back a little. However, Virginia came out STRONG in the second half fighting and looking for a way to win. 15 minutes into the half, Lauren Alwine collected a pass on the left side and curled a her shot to the far post past Penn St star goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher. Sinead Farrelly blasted a shot from 15 yards out in the 65th minute to tie the game. Virginia started to gain momentum and in the 73rd minute, Caroline MIller took a shot to the upper right corner to give Virginia the lead. 2 minutes later, Hollenberg scored to give the Cavaliers a 4-2 lead. Penn State’ defense looked overwhelmed, and just about a minute later, Miller increased the lead for Virginia. Meghan Lenczyk sealed the win on the 80th minute, upsetting Penn State, 4th seed, and ranked 16th in the nation.

LSU v Texas A&M: The two played to a 1-1 tie, which led to 2 over time periods in which neither team could score to advance. Texas A&M took the lead in the 65th minute when Rachel Shipley took a cross to the far post where Emily Peterson connected with the ball to put it into the back of the net. 2 minutes later, Malorie Rutledge was taken down in the penalty area, and Melissa Clarke scored the following penalty kick to get 4th-seeded LSU back in the game. A round of penalty kicks was needed to define the team that would move on to the Sweet 16. Texas A&M came out victorious scoring 4 penalty kicks to LSU’s 2.

The Sweet 16 round will be played over the weekend, and here are the matches, including my picks:

• Stanford v Santa Clara: Stanford
• Wisconsin v Boston College: Boston College
• Portland v Virginia Tech: Portland
• Virginia v UCLA: UCLA
• UNC v Maryland: UNC
• Wake Forest v South Carolina: South Carolina
• Notre Dame v Oregon St: Notre Dame
• Texas A&M v Florida St: Florida State

NCAA Tournament- First Round Results and Predictions

The NCAA Division 1 women’s soccer tournament is in full swing as the first round was played, with all of the top seeds getting through to the next round with no problems. And here are the results of the 32 matches played on Friday (Stanford played on Thursday)

1. Stanford 2, Northern Arizona 0
2. BYU 2, UCSB 0
3. Oklahoma St 0 (5) , USC 0 (4)
4. MIchigan St. 0, Santa Clara 1
5. UCF 3, Milwaukee 0
6. ASU 1 (3), Wisconsin 1 (4)
7. Boston U. 0, Connecticut 1
8. Harvard 0, Boston College 1
9. Portland 4, Denver 0
10. Washington 1, Mississippi 0
11. Marquette 0 (3), Dayton 0 (4)
12. Murray St. 0, Virginia Tech 2
13. Penn St. 5, Colgate 0
14. Virgina 0 (3), St. John’s 0 (1)
15. San Diego St. 1, San Diego 0
16. Boise St. 1, UCLA 7
17. UNC 1, High Point 0
18. UNC Wilmington 0, Georgia 3
19. Washington St. 1, Villanova 0
20. Monmouth 0, Maryland 4
21. Wake Forest 2, Kennesaw 0
22. Loyola 0, West Virginia 2
23. Rutgers 2, Duke 0
24. Davidson 0, South Carolina 4
25. Notre Dame 5, IUPUI 0
26. Central Michigan 2, Purdue 0
27. Ohio St. 1, Oregon St. 3
28. Illinois St. 0, Florida 2
29. LSU 7, Ark.-Pline Bluff 0
30. Memphis 1, Texas A&M 3
31. Auburn 1, Cal 2
32. Southeastern Louisiana 1, FSU 4

One match that stands out is the one between UCLA and Boise St., in which UCLA  came from behind to win 7-1. They went down in just the 6th minute after Maureen Fitzgerald put the Lions on top, but forward Sidney Leroux scored in the 12th, and 15th minute to put her Bruins on top.  Senior forward Lauren Cheney scored in the 23th minute to finish the scoring in the first half. Leroux scored 2 minutes into the second half, and yet again in the 51st minute. Cheney had another goal 8 minutes later, and Liz Zadro scored UCLA’s 7th goal of the night 4 minutes before regulation. Leroux tied the school’s record for matches in a  single game with 4 joining Traci Arkenberg, Danesha Adams, and Lauren Cheney.

The first round is over, and just like that, there are 16 matches to be played on Sunday, November 15, with the exception of Stanford vs BYU,  which kicks off Saturday at 1pm PT.

So here are my predictions for second-round action:

• Stanford vs BYU: Stanford
• Oklahoma St vs Santa Clara: Santa Clara
• UCF vs Wisconsin: UCF
• Connecticut vs. Boston College: Boston
• Portland vs Washington: Portland
• Dayton vs Virginia Tech: Dayton
• Penn St vs Virginia: Penn St
• San Diego St vs UCLA: UCLA
• UNC vs Georgia: UNC
• Washington St vs Maryland: Maryland
• Wake Forest vs West Virginia: Wake Forest
• Rutgers vs South Carolina: South Carolina
• Notre Dame vs Central Mich: Notre Dame
• Oregon St vs Florida: Florida
• LSU vs Texas A&M: LSU
• Cal vs Florida St: Florida St

Don’t forget to check out the interactive bracket for live updates!

College Cup: 2009 D-I soccer bracket released

Tourney season is on….

The field of 64 teams, which will compete for the 28th NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship, was announced today by the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Committee.

The top 16 teams are seeded and conference teams cannot play each other in the first or second rounds. When pairing teams, the committee follows geographic proximity parameters. Sites are selected for the first and second rounds to create the least number of flights.  Thirteen of the top 16 seeds will be hosting first- and second-round competition.

The four No. 1 seeds include Stanford University, an automatic qualifier from the Pacific-10 Conference, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, an automatic qualifier from the Atlantic Coast Conference, University of California, Los Angeles from the Pacific-10 and Florida State University from the Atlantic Coast.

Stanford will host Northern Arizona University, the Big Sky Conference champion, in a first-round match on Thursday, November 12. UCLA will host Boise State University, the Western Athletic Conference champion, in its opening-round game on Friday, Nov. 13. That same day North Carolina will host High Point University, the Big South Conference champion. Florida State, an at-large selection from the Atlantic Coast, will host Southeastern Louisiana University, the automatic qualifier from the Southland Conference.
North Carolina is the only team who has been invited to the tournament every year since its inception in 1982.

The No. 2 seeds include Boston College, University of Portland, University of South Carolina, Columbia and University of Notre Dame. Capturing No. 3 seeds are University of Central Florida, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and University of Florida. Santa Clara University, Penn State University, University of Maryland and Louisiana State University complete the top 16 seeded teams, each earning a No. 4 seed.

The Atlantic Coast and Pacific-10 lead all conferences with eight teams in the tournament. Seven teams will represent the Big East Conference. Six teams enter the tournament from the Southeastern Conference and the Big Ten Conference will be represented by five teams.

Thirty conferences were granted automatic bids for the 2009 championship. The remaining 34 teams were selected at-large.

The automatic qualifying conferences and their representatives follow:  America East Conference, Boston University; Atlantic 10 Conference, University of Dayton; Atlantic Coast, North Carolina; Atlantic Sun Conference, Kennesaw State University; Big 12 Conference, Oklahoma State University; Big East, Notre Dame; Big Sky, Northern Arizona; Big South, High Point; Big Ten, Pennsylvania State University; Big West Conference, University of California, Santa Barbara; Colonial Athletic Association, University of North Carolina, Wilmington; Conference USA, University of Memphis; Horizon League, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Ivy Group, Harvard University; Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Loyola College (Maryland); Mid-American Conference, Central Michigan University; Missouri Valley Conference, Illinois State University; Mountain West Conference, San Diego State University; Northeast Conference, Monmouth University; Ohio Valley Conference, Murray State University; Pacific-10, Stanford; Patriot League, Colgate University; Southeastern, South Carolina; Southern Conference, Davidson College; Southland, Southeastern Louisiana; Southwestern Conference, University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff; The Summit League, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis; Sun Belt Conference, University of Denver; West Coast Conference, University of Portland; and WAC, Boise State.

Nine teams are making their first appearance in the tournament and include: Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Boise State, Central Michigan, Davidson, Indiana/Purdue-Indianapolis, Murray State, North Carolina-Wilmington, Southeastern Louisiana and St. John’s (New York).

First-round matches will be played Friday, November 13, at campus sites, and second-round matches will be played Sunday, November 15, at the same campus sites.  The first-round contests hosted by Stanford will be played Thursday, November 12 with the second-round game to be played Saturday, November 14. Third-round games will be played at on-campus sites November 20, 21 or 22. Quarterfinal matches will be played November 27, 28 or 29. Times will be announced.

The 28th annual NCAA Women’s College Cup will be played December 4 and 6 at the Aggie Soccer Stadium in College Station, Texas. Texas A&M University, College Station will serve as host.

In the 2008 championship game, North Carolina captured its 19th NCAA title with a 2-1 victory over Notre Dame. Tarheel Casey Nogueira was named the Most Outstanding Player on offense and the Fighting Irish’s Carrie Dew was named the Most Outstanding Player on defense.

Interactive Bracket

(via release)

2009 D-I Field Hockey bracket released

Defending champ Maryland hasn’t lost this year, going 20-0 en route to an ACC title. Tonight, the Terps and 15 others learned their fates in the D-I Selection Show.

Five conferences were awarded automatic qualification. In addition, six conferences competed for three play-in berths and the remaining eight teams were selected at large.

The following conferences and their representatives received automatic qualification:

Atlantic Coast Conference       University of Maryland, College Park
Big East Conference                    University of Connecticut
Big Ten Conference                     Michigan State University
Colonial Athletic Assn              University of Delaware
Ivy Group                                       Princeton University

The teams winning the play-in berths were American University from the Patriot League, the University of Richmond from the Atlantic 10 Conference and Stanford University from the Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference.

The NCAA championship bracket lists the eight at-large teams, as well as the pairings, sites and dates.

First- and second-round games will be played on four campus sites November 14 and 15. Wake Forest University will host the semifinals and final, November 20 and 22 at Kentner Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. For ticket information, call 888/758-3322.

In 2008, Maryland claimed its sixth NCAA Division I Field Hockey Championship title with a 4-2 victory over Wake Forest at Trager Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky.

To see how the Terps clinched their perfect season and the ACC Championship, check out the video below.

Honda Award Winners – Best Female Collegiate Athletes

For the 24th consecutive year, Honda has honored the most outstanding female collegiate athletes in the nation with the Collegiate Women Sports Awards.

Winners are selected in each of the 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports by a panel of more than 1,000 NCAA administrators.

Each year, one deserving athlete is also chosen as the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year to receive the coveted Honda-Broderick Cup. This  winner will be announced June 22 in New York.

So, without further ado. The 2009 Honda Award Winners are (drum roll….)

Basketball: Renee Montgomery, UConn senior

Montgomery, a four-year starter as point guard for the Huskies, was the #4 draft WNBA pick this year, chosen by the Minnesota Lynx. A native of St. Albans, West Virginia, she captained her team to an undefeated season this year, culminating with the NCAA championship in which she scored 18 points in the final game.

Other nominees included Angel McCoughtry from the University of Louisville, teammate Maya Moore from the University of Connecticut and Courtney Paris from University of Oklahoma.

Cross-Country: Sally Kipyego,  Texas Tech University senior

Kipyego has been chosen for the third year in a row as the nation’s top collegiate female cross-country athlete. The senior, who  is majoring in nursing, finished her college cross-country career with one of her school’s most impressive athletic records ever. She went undefeated in her three years at Texas Tech and is the most decorated female student-athlete in NCAA Division I cross-country history.

Field Hockey: Susie Rowe, University of Maryland senior

A native of London, England, Terrapin co-captain Rowe is a three-time first-team All-American who led her team to its sixth National title this year (third on her watch), scoring the game’s winning goal to top off her 28-goal, 74-point season, both school records. She was also named the ACC Tournament MVP for the second time, making her only the fifth two-time winner in conference history, as well as ACC Defensive Player of Year.

Other nominees include Jen Long from Penn State, Lauren Pfeiffer from University of Iowa and Shannon Taylor from Syracuse.

Golf: Maria Hernandez, Purdue University senior

Ranked #7 in the nation, Hernandez won six of 12 tournaments this season, with a low round of 67 and a 72.8 stroke average for the season. She recorded a career low of 66 on three occasions, including in 2008 to earn the best third-round score in Big Ten Championships history.

Other nominees included Carlota Ciganda, a freshman at Arizona State University, as well as University of Southern California freshman Jennifer Song and sophomore Lizette Salas.

Gymnastics: Courtney Kupets, University of Georgia senior

Winner of both a Silver and Bronze Medal at the 2004 Olympics as well as the 2007 Honda Award, Kupets was also nominated in 2006.

Other nominees include Kristina Baskett, University of Utah, Ashleigh Clare-Kearney, Louisiana State University and Jessica Lopez from University of Denver.

Lacrosse: Hannah Nielse, Northwestern senior

The Australian helped lead her team to its fifth straight NCAA title. She had six assists in the 21-7 win over North Carolina in the championship game. She also led the nation with 142 points and 83 assists, breaking the previous NCAA record for assists in a season (69) that she set in 2007.

Other nominees for the award included Notre Dame’s Jillian Byers, North Carolina’s Amber Falcone and Maryland’s Caitlyn McFadden.

Soccer: Casey Nogueira, University of North Carolina junior

Nogueira resides in Raleigh, North Carolina. The 5′6″ forward scored two second-half goals to lead her Tar Heels to an upset win in last season’s NCAA Championship game, earning her NCAA Tournament offensive MVP honors. She led the nation last season with 58 points and 25 goals, seven of them game winners.

Other nominees included Kerri Hanks and Brittany Bock, both Notre Dame seniors; and Christina Di Martino, a senior at UCLA.

Softball: Danielle Lawrie, Washington junior

The Canadian helped the Huskies win their first national championship in June. Lawrie had a nation-leading 42 wins and 521 strikeouts. The 5-foot-7 right-hander redshirted during the 2008 season to play for her country at the Beijing Olympics, where Canada came in fourth.

The other three finalists were Florida’s Stacey Nelson, Arizona State’s Kaitlin Cochran and Northwestern’s Tammy Williams.

Swim/Dive:   Dana Vollmer, University of California senior

Vollmer, who transferred to Berkeley from the University of Florida, was named the 2009 NCAA Swimmer of the Year after claiming individual titles in both the 100- and 200-yard freestyle events at the 2009 NCAA Championships and helping lead her team to its first ever National Championship.

Other nominees include Julia Smit, a junior at Stanford University; Rebecca Soni, a University of Southern California senior and Gemma Spofforth, a junior at the University of Florida.

Tennis: Mallory Cecil, Duke freshman

From Spartanburg, S.C., Cecil had a 32-4 record in leading Duke to the NCAA team title. She beat out three other finalists — Aurelija Miseviciute of Arkansas, Maria Mosolova of Northwestern and Laura Vallverdu of Miami.

Track & Field: Jenny Barringer, University of Colorado senior.

Barringer competed for the U.S. Olympic team at the 2008 Games in Beijing and finished ninth in the 3,000m steeplechase, setting an American record of 9 minutes, 22.26 seconds. She is a four-time All-American USTFCCCA and Big 12 Women’s Indoor Track Athlete of the Year, as well as a four-time Midwest Region Steeplechase Champion and three-time Big 12 Champion.

Other nominees included Sarah Bowman, a senior at the University of Tennessee, Tiffany Ofili, a senior at the University of Michigan and Blessing Okagbare, a junior at the University of Texas, El Paso.

Volleyball: Nicole Fawcett, Penn State senior

A 6′4″ left-side hitter, Fawcett is a native of Zanesfield, Ohio. She led the Lions last season to their second consecutive NCAA title, serving the championship point, and helped her team become the first-ever with a no-loss regular season record (96-0). The AVCA National Player of the Year, Fawcett was also named the Big Ten Player of the Year and is a three-time AVCA First Team All-America selection.

Other nominees included Foluke Akinradewo, a senior at Stanford University (and last year’s Honda Sports Award winner), Christa Harmotto, a fellow Penn State senior and Honda Sports award nominee for the second straight year and Destinee Hooker, a junior at the University of Texas.

Past Honda-Broderick Cup Winners

Candace Parker		2007-08		University of Tennessee, Basketball
Sarah Pavan		2006-07		University of Nebraska, Volleyball
Christine Sinclair		2005-06		The University of Portland, Soccer
Ogonna Nnamani		2004-05		Stanford University, Volleyball
Tara Kirk		2003-04		Stanford University, Swimming & Diving
Natasha Watley		2002-03		University of California, Los Angeles, Softball
Angela Williams		2001-02		University of Southern California, Track & Field
Jackie Stiles		2000-01		Southwest Missouri State, Basketball
Cristina Teuscher		1999-00		Columbia University, Swimming & Diving
Misty May		1998-99		Long Beach State University, Volleyball
Chamique Holdsclaw		1997-98		University of Tennessee, Basketball
Cindy Daws		1996-97		University of Notre Dame, Soccer

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