Courtesy of UVM Athletic Communications
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Vermont senior guard
May
Kotsopoulos (Waterloo, Ontario) has been selected a candidate for
the 2009-10 Lowe's Senior CLASS Women's Basketball Award. A total of 30
women's basketball players were named candidates for the award that is
presented annually to a NCAA Division I student-athlete.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a
NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of
excellence – classroom, character, community and competition. The
complete list of candidates follows this release.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in
School™, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total
student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics
to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Kotsopoulos, who was recently named to the 2009 America East Preseason
All-Conference Team, has been named the America East Women's Basketball
Scholar-Athlete in 2008 and 2009. She is also a two-time ESPN The Magazine
Women's Basketball Academic All-District I selection. As a business
administration major, she maintains a 3.67 grade point average at
Vermont.
Kotsopoulos, the 2009 team MVP, was instrumental in the women's
basketball team's run in winning the program's fifth America East
Championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament last season. The 5-10
guard ranked second on the team in scoring (14.0 ppg) last year and reached
the 1,000-point milestone as a junior.
She was named to the America East All-Conference Second Team,
All-Defensive Team and All-Academic Team for the second straight year in
2009. Kotsopoulos also earned a spot on the America East All-Championship
team after averaging 17 points and shooting 56 percent from three-point
range and 82 percent from the foul line in three tournament games. She
reached double figures in each game, with a tournament high of 21 in the
victory over No. 1 Boston U in the championship game.
This year’s candidate class includes several players on the preseason
watch lists for the women’s John R. Wooden Award, 11 players who are
preseason favorites for the State Farm Wade Trophy and three players who
finished their junior seasons as all-Americans. There are four players who
were recognized last year as ESPN The Magazine Academic All-Americans and
11 women represent teams ranked in the top 25 women’s preseason poll.
Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the
Senior CLASS Award™ winner for men’s basketball at the 2010 NCAA
Men’s Final Four® in Indianapolis in April and for women’s basketball
at the 2010 NCAA Women’s Final Four® in San Antonio in April.
The list of 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway
through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the
official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting
system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one finalist who best
exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of classroom, character, community
and competition.
Kotosopoulos is the second straight Catamount to be selected as a
candidate for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Women's Basketball Award. Former
standout Amy Rosenkrantz '09 earned the honor last season.
Vermont will host Franklin Pierce in its final preseason contest on
Saturday (Nov. 6) at 4:30 p.m. in the second game of a basketball
doubleheader at Patrick Gymnasium. The UVM men's team will face Saint
Michael's College at 1 p.m.
The women's game can be heard on WVMT-620 AM and on the Internet at
SportsJuice.com. Live video of the game will also be available on a
pay-per-view basis of ($7) via B2 Networks.