Whaley A Top-10 Finalist For NCAA Woman Of The Year

NORMAN, Okla. - The NCAA announced today that Oklahoma's Phylesha Whaley, a former women's basketball player, is a top 10 finalist for the National Woman of the Year Award. The award honors outstanding female student-athletes who have excelled in academics, athletics and community leadership.

Whaley becomes OU's first top 10 finalist and is one of only three Sooners to win the NCAA State Woman of the Year Award. Other Sooner state honorees were Meredith Van Horn (volleyball) in 1999 and Jenny Bramer (track and field) in 1997. Not since Rebecca Lobo in 1995 has a women's basketball player won the national award. Last year's winner was University of California-Davis' track and field standout Jamila Demby.

This is the 10th year that the Woman of the Year Award has been given, and the theme is "A Decade of Excellence, a Future of Success." This year's top-10 finalists include three Olympians, a Rhodes Scholar finalist and the female winner of the Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship, the NCAA's highest academic honor. It also includes a world-record holder, NCAA champions and the winner of the Honda Broderick Cup for Divison II and for Division III.

The finalists are:

Student-Athlete	College/University	Sport
Carolin Bouchard	Boston College	Basketball
Amanda Colby	Bates College	Volleyball
Jessica Daily	University of Arkansas (Fayetteville)	Track and Cross Country
Jayne Even	North Dakota State University	Basketball
Alia Fischer	Washington (Mo.) University	Basketball
Emily Haley	University of St. Thomas (Minn.)	Cross Country and Track
Anna Hallbergson	Barry University	Tennis
Kristy Kowal	University Georgia	Swimming
Gabrielle Rose	Stanford University	Swimming
Phylesha Whaley	University of Oklahoma	Basketball

Whaley, who led Oklahoma in scoring for four years, earned her bachelor's degree in sociology in July 2000 and recently accepted an assistant coaching position with Texas-San Antonio. The Slaton, Texas, native boasts an impressive list of athletic, academic and community service accomplishments, including being named the 2000 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year and a Kodak All-American. She also was a three-time all-league first team selection and a four-time team MVP. Whaley left the University as the school's and Big 12's top scorer with 2,187 points. She became the Sooners' all-time scorer in the first round of the NCAA Tournament when she poured in 33 points against Brigham Young, the second most points recorded in a 2000 NCAA Tournament game. She also holds the school record for points in a single game with 40, established her junior season in a game at Arkansas.

"I am very excited and flattered to be included in this group of elite women, and to be a finalist for this award is overwhelming," said Whaley. "It was a tremendous honor to win the state woman of the year award, but to be a top 10 finalist is really, really, special."

The 5-10 forward became the first player in school history to be drafted by a professional team. Whaley was selected by the Minnesota Lynx in the third round and was the 38th overall pick in the 2000 WNBA Draft in April. She ended her collegiate career averaging 18.9 points and 7.7 rebounds. In addition to being Oklahoma's all-time leading scorer, she also ranks at the top of eight other career charts, including free throws made (552), offensive rebounds (313), defensive rebounds (579) and minutes played (4,056).

Academically, she was placed on numerous All-Big 12 teams, Commissioner's Honor Rolls and Sooner Scholars Lists. Whaley also was heavily involved in the Norman community as she devoted at least one hour a week to a Norman elementary school as a mentor. She was the team leader in the United Way Meals on Wheels and Day of Caring programs. Plus, she participated in OU's City Sights tour that featured Sooner Speaking Tours, free basketball clinics and Sooner Shadow programs.

The four-year team captain and Student Athlete Advisory Board member was honored by the Athletic Department when she was the recipient of the Athletic Director's Leadership Award this past spring.

"Last year was a phenomenal one for the University of Oklahoma and the women's basketball team was a large part of the success," stated OU Director of Athletics Joe Castiglione. "Four years ago, Phylesha Whaley made a commitment to OU and our pursuit of excellence. She quietly led OU to its best season in school history and is richly deserving of this award. She represents the true definition of what a student-athlete should be in today's collegiate environment. I applaud the decision to make her a finalist for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award. She set the standard for what a collegiate student-athlete should be."

More than 350-student-athletes were nominated for this year's award by their colleges and universities. An award winner from each state and the District of Columbia was named. A committee comprised of representatives from member schools selected the state winners. The state-level winners include 14 student-athletes from Division I, nine student-athletes from Division II and 28 student-athletes from Division III. These student-athletes participated in 15 of 18 sports in which women compete for NCAA Championships.

The national winner will be selected by the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics and will be announced at the 2000 NCAA Woman of the Year dinner presented by Rawlings on October 15 at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in Indianapolis. For a complete list of state award winners visit the NCAA web site at http://www.ncaa.org/awards/woty/.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Whaley A Top-10 Finalist For NCAA Woman Of The Year

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