Women's Sports

ORTEGA WINS HONDA AWARD FOR LACROSSE

June 21, 2022 by Tara S

Jamie Ortega, a senior attacker from the University of North Carolina, was named the Honda Sport Award winner for Lacrosse as announced today by Chris Voelz, Executive Director of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA).

Ortega is just the second Tar Heel to win the Honda Award, joining Kara Cannizzaro (2013).

The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the CWSA for the past 46 years to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA- sanctioned sports and signifies “the best of the best in collegiate athletics”. The winner of the sport award becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious 2022 Honda Cup, which will be presented on a live telecast on CBS Sports Network on June 27th.

Ortega was chosen by a vote of administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools. Finalists included Ally Mastroianni (North Carolina), Charlotte North (Boston College) and Emily Sterling (Maryland).

“I am honored to have been chosen for this year’s Honda Sports Award for Lacrosse,” Ortega said. “To be selected from this amazing group of finalists is truly gratifying. I am part of an incredible team sport and receive this along with the teammates who I’ve shared my accomplishments with, and I am both humbled and grateful to have been chosen.”

Ortega was named the ACC Attacker of the Year for the second straight year and is a two-time Tewaaraton Award finalist. Hailing from Centereach, N.Y., she is a four-time First Team All-American and the first five-time All-American in UNC history after earning Third Team honors as a freshman.

She led North Carolina to four trips to the NCAA Final Four and the 2022 national title. In the conference postseason, she set ACC Tournament records with nine points and five assists against Boston College.

The attacker is UNC’s leader in goals (69), assists (44) and points (113) on the season and her points and assists ranked sixth and seventh nationally. Overall, she finished her career first in ACC history and second in NCAA history with 466 career points. Her 334 career goals are third in the NCAA history and second in ACC annals. The senior closed her career as UNC’s career leader in goals and points and is second in school history in assists.

“We are so grateful that Jamie is being recognized with the prestigious Honda Award,” said head coach Jenny Levy. “We cannot think of a more deserving student-athlete. Throughout her time in Chapel Hill, Jamie excelled at the highest level and continued to grow as a player and teammate. A consummate winner, her consistency of excellence during her collegiate career and the impact she had on our program is unparalleled.”

“As a co-captain of our 2022 team, Jamie’s leadership, hard work and dominant performances were keys to our undefeated, national championship season,” continued Levy. “Simply put, she is a champion who represents the University of North Carolina and the sport of lacrosse in a first class manner.”

The CWSA, entering its 46th year, has honored the nation’s top NCAA women athletes for their superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its partnership in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3.4 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women’s athletics programs.

April 25, 2022 by Tara S

Angela Eiter is the first woman to climb one of the world’s hardest routes

Austrian climber Angela Eiten had a pretty good weekend.

On Sunday, the 31-year-old became the first woman to send a 5.15b grade. She bested the La Planta de Shiva climb, which is located in Villanueva Del Rosario, Andalucia, Spain. Before her historic climb, the route had only been finished by men — and only a handful of them at that.

Eiten was obviously stoked and took to her Instagram, saying it was “One of the most memorable days of my life.”

“One of the most memorable days of my life. Planta de Shiva 9b ✅ … I still can’t believe it. A dream came true! 😆😛😃👻🙈 #verleihtflügel #jedentagtirol @team_edelrid @lasportivagram #9b 📸 Redbull Contentpool/ E.Holzknecht”

The site 8a.nu notes that Eiten had been training for this specific route. She had been sending similar climbs, including a 5.14b at La Planta de Shiva just two years ago, all leading up to Sunday’s historic moment.

“One of my hardest so far, pure endurance climbing with few rests, continuously hard with minimum of rests,” she told the site.

Angela eiter is the first woman to climb one of the worlds hardest routes

https://agsa.org/2022/04/4255/

USA CRICKET WINS 100% CRICKET FEMALE CRICKET INITIATIVE AWARD IN ICC DEVELOPMENT AWARDS

April 20, 2022 by Tara S

By: USA Cricket

USA Cricket have been awarded as winners of the ICC Development Award for 2021 in the 100% Cricket Female Cricket Initiative of the Year for the ICC Americas region. The award was given for the fantastic development of the new Women and Girls Pathway that was launched in May 2021 and tied in to the subsequently launched plan to Shape the Future for Women and Girls in American Cricket during 2021-2023.

The ICC Development Awards 2021 reflect these achievements and show how Associate Members keep empowering individuals and reaching out to communities, we celebrate these stories this International Day of Sport for Development and Peace. The regional winners will now be put forward as the nominees for the global awards to be decided in the coming weeks.

[Read more…]

100% Cricket Female Cricket Initiative and Associate Women’s Performance of the Year

April 7, 2022 by Tara S

ICC Associate Members have continued to find ways to innovate, engage and inspire over the past year in the most difficult of circumstances amid the covid pandemic, but cricketing nations have used a combination of determination and creative thinking to overcome any obstacles in their way.

ICC Development Award – Part I: Development initiative and Associate Men’s performance of the year

ICC Development Awards – Part II: Fan engagement and Cricket 4 Good Social Impact Initiative of the Year

From developing the motor skills of children to making cricket more accessible, initiatives in the Associate nations continue to ensure the game is spread far and wide with a marked increase in participation.

[Read more…]

U. of Chicago is No. 19 in Nike/USA Lacrosse Division III Women’s Top 20

March 1, 2022 by Tara S

Top-ranked Salisbury added a second victory against a Top 20 opponent, Gettysburg climbed up the chart by collecting a pair of wins over ranked competition and the Division III women’s lacrosse season is heating up early.

The defending national champion Sea Gulls are staking their claim atop the rankings to start the season with a 3-0 start that this week included a narrow win over former No. 3 Washington & Lee. Gettysburg moved into the top five by beating No. 8 Messiah on Wednesday and No. 12 Denison on Saturday.

The New England Small College Athletic Conference teams return to competition starting this week as the spring season kicks into full gear.

[Read more…]

Hyde sets Wheaton North scoring mark

February 1, 2022 by Tara S

By Stan Goff
Daily Herald Correspondent

What Claire Hyde has accomplished on the basketball court for Wheaton North is quite impressive, but the way she acted during her crowning moment on Saturday was just as impressive.

When the Falcons senior guard knocked down a 3-point shot less than a minute into the second half, Wheaton North called a timeout to recognize the fact that Hyde had just broken the school record for most points scored in a career. But Hyde was not ready for a celebration, rather she wanted to get her team’s defense fired up for the next possession of the game.

There wasn’t much need to worry, after all, as Hyde’s shot put her team up 34-20 and they were well on their way to defeating their crosstown rivals 58-32. But it’s that extreme focus that has helped this 5-foot-4 dynamo pile up a historic total of points, as well as lead this year’s team to an 18-5 record and a 9-2 mark in the DuKane Conference.

“We called that timeout to congratulate her and she was like, ‘Hey we need to focus on getting a stop here.’ It just shows you what a great kid she is and what this whole team is focused on,” said Wheaton North coach Dave Eaton, who presented Hyde with the game ball following the win. “She’s just an all-around great player but also one of the best kids to ever where a Wheaton North jersey. She’s an unbelievable kid. As good a basketball player as she is she’s an even better person.”

Hyde doesn’t follow her individual stats very closely, but she was aware that she was within the school record of 1,381 points set by 2018 graduate Hannah Swider. She entered Saturday’s contest needing 13 points to set the record and tallied a game-high 12 through two quarters as the hosts built a 28-14 lead. Hyde hit on three shots from beyond the arch in the first half, showing off her range with a couple bombs from well beyond the line.

Having grown up on the south side of Wheaton, Hyde knows many of the Tigers players well and was even coached on a seventh-grade team by Wheaton Warrenville South coach Rob Kroehnke.

“It was crazy how it played out that it was that amount of points and it landed on this game,” said Hyde, who finished with 21 points and 7 rebounds. “I’ve always appreciated Kroehnke and all that he’s done for me. He’s always been such a role model in my life. I grew up on the South side so I obviously have a connection there.

“I did [know about the record] because my parents and the coaches were all talking about it. I was really nervous coming into this game, I’m not gonna lie. My stomach was turning but I was just focusing on getting the win and thinking let’s get another conference victory.”ADVERTISING

Hannah Struebing paced the Tigers (13-11, 2-8) with 14 points and Campbell Bastian added a trio of 3s, but the day belonged to Hyde and the Falcons.

“I got to coach Claire when she was in seventh grade, so I’m very happy for her,” Kroehnke said. “It’s well-deserved. I told her I hope I never have to coach against her again, but that I love you and I’m very happy for you.”

Caitlin Clark is a Superstar Who’s in Right Place at Right Time with the Right People

January 26, 2022 by Tara S

Iowa sophomore guard Caitlin Clark speaks on her accomplishments, her hopes for the remainder of the season and her plans for the future.

By Zachary Draves | SB NAtion

If you’re looking for a 6-foot point guard who is a consummate playmaker and can handle the ball with such precision, get her teammates involved at every chance, shoot the ball from beyond the arc as good as the likes of Steph Curry, put up triple doubles and win you the game, then Iowa’s Caitlin Clark is the player for you.

The 19-year-old sophomore is on a roll and she has been collecting accolade after accolade going all the way back to the 2020-21 season when she first came to Iowa City.

After scoring an impressive 27 points in her first game as a Hawkeye, Clark set the Iowa freshman record of 26.6 points per game that season and became Division I’s scoring leader.

Along with that, she led the nation in total assists (214), total points (799), field goals made (266) and 3-pointers made (116).

As a result, she was named Big Ten Conference Player of the Week a record five times and was also named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. In addition, she led her team to the Sweet 16.

[Read more…]

Caitlin Clark becomes Big Ten’s fastest to 1,000-point mark in Iowa’s 93-56 win over Evansville

January 26, 2022 by Tara S

Alyssa Hertel Hawk Central

Sophomore guard Caitlin Clark needed just three points to reach 1,000 in her career ahead of Sunday’s home game against Evansville.

Clark has averaged 22 points per game this season, so it wasn’t a question of if she would reach that milestone but when. She gave Iowa its first lead of the game with a jumper in the opening two minutes. With 5:04 on the clock in the first quarter, Clark sunk a deep 3-pointer on a fast break.

She officially broke the 1,000-point mark and, in doing so, became the fastest player in Big Ten history to accomplish this feat. It took Clark just 40 games to score 1,000 points, which beat out previous record holder Kelsey Mitchell, who did it in 41 games for Ohio State.

Iowa guard Caitlin Clark (22) makes a basket during a NCAA non-conference women's basketball game against IUPUI, Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2021, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.

Clark finished the day against Evansville with a career-high 44 points, a Carver-Hawkeye Arena record, and accounted for nearly half of Iowa’s points in the Hawkeyes’ 93-56 win.

In her historic day, she also recorded eight assists, five rebounds and two steals in 30 minutes of play.

“No matter who’s on the floor, it’s a read and react offense,” Clark said about what about Iowa’s offense makes her so successful. “Nothing’s really set in stone and that’s really when I’m at my best, when I’m just playing, my teammates are flowing, when we pass the ball as well as we do and we just shoot it really well.

[Read more…]

Iowa’s Caitlin Clark makes basketball history with second straight 30-point triple-double

January 26, 2022 by Tara S

Mechelle VoepelESPN.com

Stat stuffing is a favorite hobby of Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark, who leads Division I women’s basketball in scoring at 26.2 PPG. But her history-making past two games were pretty ridiculous even for her.

On Thursday, the sophomore became the first player in Division I basketball history, men’s or women’s, to record back-to-back triple-doubles while scoring 30 or more points in both games. Clark also became the first player in Big Ten women’s hoops history to have back-to-back triple-doubles, and she did it on a night when Iowa got its largest margin of victory ever — 56 points — against a Big Ten foe.

[Read more…]