LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Barry University women's golfer Nancy Vergara finished as a finalist for the The Honda Sports Award for the NCAA Division II Athlete of the Year.
Ashland University women's basketball player, Kari Daugherty, a senior forward from Fresno, Ohio, with a 3.98 grade point average, won the award. It marks her second consecutive Honda Sports Award. She will be presented with this year's honor as part of a live telecast of the 2013 Honda Cup on ESPNU Monday, June 24th at the USC Galen Center Founders Room in Los Angeles, Calif.
Vergara was the NCAA Division II individual champion last month at LPGA International Legends Course in Daytona Beach, Fla., after shooting a 3-over 291 in the four-day 72-hole tournament.
The award is presented annually to the top female athlete, chosen from 11 NCAA-sanctioned sports, with each having one nominee derived from coaches' panels, All-America committees or finish at the respective national championships. The 11 sports include: basketball, cross country, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, track & field and volleyball. Daugherty was chosen by a vote of coaches from NCAA member schools.
Finalists also included Adams State's Alicia Nelson (cross country), Merrimack College's Candace Waldie (field hockey), Long Island University Post's Jackie Sileo (lacrosse), Univ. of West Florida's Chelsea Palmer (soccer), University of Indianapolis' Jennifer DeMotte (softball), Southern Connecticut's Amanda Thomas (swimming/diving), Armstrong-Atlantic's Aleksandra Filipovski (tennis), Academy of Art University's Vashti Thomas (track & field) and Tampa University's Danielle Selkridge (volleyball).
The Collegiate Women Sports Awards has honored the nation's top NCAA women athletes for 37 years, recognizing superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its sponsorship in 1986, Honda has provided more than $2.5 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women's athletics programs at the institutions.