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Former recipients come together to welcome Class of 2016; honor UConn basketball star, Breanna Stewart, with coveted Honda Cup
 
Torrance, Calif., July 13, 2016 – Recognizing the achievements of top collegiate women athletes, Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) celebrated its 40th anniversary during a live broadcast on CBS Sports Network on Monday, June 27.  The event marked 40 years of the CWSA and 30 years of Honda’s corporate partnership. Watch a video of past award winners at http://honda.us/CWSA.
 
For the past four decades, the CWSA has honored the nation’s top NCAA women student-athletes for their superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. The organization annually presents the Honda Sports Award to the top female collegiate athlete in 12 NCAA- sanctioned sports. These athletes then compete for the title of Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious Honda Cup.
 
“By honoring these very talented student-athletes and their achievements on a national stage, Honda hopes to inspire younger generations of athletes and open doors to future opportunities for all female athletes,” said American Honda Vice President of Corporate Relations & Social Responsibility Steve Morikawa. “These women are shining examples of the power of dreams.”
To celebrate the occasion, several former Honda Cup winners were on hand to show their support, including Tracy Caulkins (University of Florida, Swimming), Lisa Fernandez (UCLA, Softball), Kim Jacob (University of Alabama, Gymnastics), Ann Meyers (UCLA, Basketball) and Oganna Nnamani (Stanford University, Volleyball). The athletes paid tribute to the organization’s legacy and welcomed the next generation of elite women.
 
This year’s Honda Sports Award honorees and Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year, Breanna Stewart of the University of Connecticut for women’s basketball, were chosen by a vote of administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools and among four finalists in each sport.
 
The class of 2016 Honda Sports Award honorees includes:

• Samantha Bricio, Volleyball, University of Southern California
• Virginia Elena Carta, Golf, Duke University
• Danielle Collins, Tennis, University of Virginia
• Taylor Cummings, Lacrosse, University of Maryland
• Alyssa Manley, Field Hockey, Syracuse University
• Courtney Okolo, Track & Field, University of Texas
• Raquel Rodriguez, Soccer, Penn State University
• Sierra Romero, Softball, University of Michigan
• Molly Seidel, Cross Country, University of Notre Dame
• Bridget Sloan, Gymnastics, University of Florida
• Breanna Stewart, Basketball, University of Connecticut
• Kelsi Worrell, Swimming & Diving, University of Louisville

 
For 2016, Senior forward Breanna Stewart (North Syracuse, N.Y.) of the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team was named the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and honored with the prestigious Honda Cup as announced by Morikawa.  Stewart finished her career as UConn's all-time leader with 414 career blocked shots and is second on the Huskies' all-time scoring list with 2,676 points. She was the top pick in the 2016 WNBA draft and is playing professionally for the Seattle Storm.
 
“On this special 40th year milestone for the CWSA, we congratulate Breanna and welcome her into the elite company of those who have held the Honda Cup for the past 39 years—truly the ‘best of the best’  in collegiate athletics!” stated Chris Voelz,  Executive Director of the CWSA.
 
Stewart joins an all-star roster including Olympic swimmer Missy Franklin, basketball superstars Maya Moore (2011, 2012) and Candace Parker (2008), track and field legend Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1985), soccer great Mia Hamm (1994) and volleyball star Misty May (1999), among others, in being recognized with this honor.
 
In addition to the announcement of the 2016 Honda Cup winner as the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year, the June 27 broadcast also featured the presentation of the Honda Inspiration Award to Emily Fogle (Purdue, Swimming & Diving), the Honda Division II Athlete of the Year to Emily Oren (Hillsdale, Track & Field) and the Honda Division III Athlete of the Year Sydney Moss (Thomas More, Basketball).
 
Since commencing the partnership in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women’s athletics programs at the institutions. To learn more, please visit www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com.
 
About Collegiate Women Sports Awards
The Collegiate Women Sports Awards has honored the nation’s top NCAA women student-athletes for 40 years, recognizing superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. For more information, visit www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com
 
About Honda
Honda seeks to be a company that society wants to exist, creating products and technologies that improve the lives of people while minimizing the environmental impacts of its products and business operations to ensure a sustainable future for society.
Honda is also committed to making positive contributions to the communities where we do business, to socially responsible business practices and to the promotion of diversity in our workforce. From our involvement in STEM education and Historically Black Colleges and Universities to our support of pediatric brain tumor research, and support of volunteer efforts by Honda associates, including environmental cleanup activities, Honda believes in giving back to the communities where we live and work. Find out more at csr.honda.com.