WSSU's Shannon Davis named NCAA Woman
of the Year for North Carolina
August 31, 2005
Indianapolis, IN - The National Collegiate Athletic Association
announced on Monday that Winston-Salem State University senior
student-athlete Shannon Davis (Detroit, MI) was named the 2005
NCAA Woman of the Year for the State of North Carolina.
Shannon Davis
 |
Davis, a senior at WSSU and member of the Lady Rams’ bowling
and softball teams was selected as one of 51 state winners
from a national pool of nominees, including representatives
from Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. (There were no nominations
from the state of Arizona.)
The NCAA Woman of the Year recognizes outstanding female student-athletes
who have excelled in academics, athletics and community leadership.
Chosen by a committee of representatives from member institutions,
29 of the 2005 state honorees are from Division I, while 16
represent Division II and six are from Division III. They represent
15 sports.
The committee of institutional representatives also will select
10 finalists from the 51 state winners, based on grade-point
average, athletics achievement and community service. The NCAA
Committee on Women's Athletics will chose the national winner
from among the 10 finalists. Finalists will be revealed in
the September 26 issue of The NCAA News.
The 2005 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced during the
annual awards dinner October 29 in Indianapolis. ESPN personality
Danielle Sargent and Kara Lawson, former University of Tennessee,
Knoxville, women's basketball standout and a 2003 Woman of
the Year top-10 finalist currently playing in the WNBA, will
serve as emcees for the evening.
As part of the Woman of the Year weekend of activities, honorees
will be working with youth and the Association's character-building
program Stay in Bounds at the NCAA Hall of Champions.
This year's state winners were chosen from a pool of 352 nominations,
76 more than in 2004 and the most since 2000, when there also
were 352 candidates for the honor. The pool showed an increase
in diversity as well, specifically in African-American, international,
Asian/Pacific Islander and Latina/Hispanic student-athletes.
Division I submitted 188 applications. Fifty-six nominations
came from Division II and 111 were received from Division III.
The numbers represent increases in submissions for all three
divisions over last year, with Division I submitting 50 more
applications and Divisions II and III registering more modest
gains at 14 and 15, respectively.
Davis, who is an inspiring story of academic and athletic
success, is the second WSSU female student athlete to garner
NCAA Woman of the Year State Finalist honors. Shannon’s
sister Heather was selected as the NCAA Woman of Year State
Finalist for the State of North Carolina last season making
2005 the second consecutive year that Winston-Salem State University
has earned finalist honors.
Commenting on the selection of Davis as a state finalist from
the state of North Carolina, WSSU Associate Director of Athletics,
and Senior Woman Administrator, Tonia Walker, said the following:
"As an Athletic Department and a University as a whole,
we are honored that Shannon has been selected as the State
Finalist for the State of North Carolina, marking the second
time and second consecutive year that an individual from our
institution has been chosen as a state finalist. Last year
it was her sister Heather, and this year, it is Shannon. Personally,
I am not surprised in the least at the selection of Shannon
as a finalist. She exemplifies not only what a student-athlete
is, but what a quality person is. She is not only a standout
athlete and student, but a standout person with exceptional
character. As the President of the Student Athlete Advisory
Committee, she has played an integral role in helping to transition
our athletic department towards Division I membership. She
truly deserves this award, and we, and all the multitudes who
focus on WSSU athletics, are truly proud of what she has accomplished
in life thus far, and will be watching as she accomplishes
even more great things."
Davis, an All-CIAA performer on the softball diamond and on
the bowling lanes, will look to be named one of the ten finalists
for the award when the finalists are announced in the coming
weeks and ultimately looks to join Kelly Albin, a lacrosse
student-athlete from the University of California, Davis, who
was recognized as the 2004 NCAA Woman of the Year. Albin is
the third winner from UC Davis since the award's inception
in 1991. The University of Georgia also has produced three
national award winners.
|
