PORTLAND, Maine - University of New Hampshire’s Cameron Lyle earned the first-ever America East Award of Valor this evening at the conference’s annual awards dinner in Portland, Maine. The award, which resembles the NCAA Award of Valor, recognizes a courageous action or noteworthy bravery.

Lyle, a four-year track & field athlete at New Hampshire, embodies the essence of the Award of Valor. The week before the Penn Relays, one of the most prestigious track meets in the world and two weeks prior to the America East Championship, Lyle made a life-changing decision. The senior was notified by the National Marrow Donor Program that he had been identified as a match for an anonymous 28-year old man who was suffering from lymphoblastic leukemia and would not survive without a bone marrow transplant.

Knowing it would prevent him from competing anymore as a collegian, Lyle volunteered for the transplant and on May 24 underwent the invasive procedure to donate bone marrow to someone he did not know. The act immediately received national coverage, including in Sports Illustrated, the Boston Globe, Huffington Post and on ESPN.

“Cameron’s act of selflessness by forgoing the end of collegiate career to help give life to a complete stranger is truly inspiring and well deserving of this honor,” said America East Commissioner Amy Huchtausen.

Lyle’s act of heroism will be forwarded on as a nominee for the NCAA Award of Valor, which has been awarded only 15 times since 1974.

The NCAA Award of Valor may be presented to a coach or administrator currently associated with intercollegiate athletics, or to a current or former varsity letter-winner at an NCAA institution who, when confronted with a situation involving personal danger, averted or minimized potential disaster by courageous action or noteworthy bravery.