June 22, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State women's volleyball opposite Blair Brown (Purcellville, Va.) has been voted one of three finalists for the Honda-Broderick Cup, given to the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year.
The "Top Three" finalists were chosen from previously announced Honda Sports Award winners in 12 different NCAA-sanctioned sports, by a vote from among more than 1,000 NCAA-member institutions. The Honda-Broderick Cup winner will be revealed at a special press conference on June 27th at Columbia University in New York.
"We are extremely proud of what Blair has accomplished during her time at Penn State," said Director of Athletics Tim Curley. "Blair has earned a spot in the record books after guiding the Nittany Lion women's volleyball program to an unprecedented four consecutive national championships. She is an excellent example of Success with Honor at Penn State. As a finalist for the Honda-Broderick Cup, we believe this establishes her as one of the top athletes in the country and are very proud of everything she has accomplished."
The Penn State Female Athlete of the Year, Brown guided the Nittany Lions to an unprecedented fourth straight NCAA title in 2010. During her career, the women's volleyball team won a record-breaking 109 consecutive matches, 65 straight Big Ten matches, 55 road matches in a row and never lost at home in Rec Hall. She closed out her career with a 140-7 record between 2007-10.
The Big Ten Player of the Year, the sixth straight for Penn State women's volleyball, Brown finished her career with 1,295 kills to rank 14th all-time at Penn State. Brown was a finalist for the prestigious AAU Sullivan Award and was named the Female Athlete of the Month by the United State Sports Academy in January. A three-time All-Big Ten honoree, Brown earned Second Team laurels in 2008 and First Team accolades in 2009 and 2010. In her final season, Brown was a Unanimous Preseason All-Big Ten selection and earned conference player of the week honors three times.
In 2010 Brown started all 37 matches and led the Nittany Lions with 521 kills, averaging 4.24 kills per set on .320 hitting. She was second on the team with 281 digs (2.28 digs per set) and had 113 total blocks (0.92 blocks per set). Her 4.24 kills per set ranked second in the Big Ten and 21st nationally, while her .320 attack percentage was ninth in the league.
The other two finalists for the Honda-Broderick Cup are senior Maya Moore (Connecticut, Women's Basketball) and senior Sheila Reed (Villanova, Cross Country, Track & Field). For more information on the three honorees, please visit http://www.collegiate womensportsawards.com.
For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit GoPSUsports.com. The Penn State women's volleyball 2011 season is presented by Rockvale Outlets and The Outlets at Hershey.