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For Immediate Release
March 18, 2004 |
contact Tilea Coleman
770.279.8027 ext. 112 |
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| PURDUE’S VALEK NAMED FRANCES POMEROY NAISMITH AWARD RECIPIENT | |
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Atlanta, Ga. - The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced that
Erika Valek of Purdue University has been selected as the recipient of the Frances
Pomeroy Naismith Award. The award is presented to the nation's most outstanding
NCAA Division I female basketball player standing at 5'8" or under that
excels in both athletics and academics.
Erika Valek is a 5'6" senior guard with the Big Ten Tournament Champion Purdue Boilermakers. She leads the team with 125 assists, 58 steals and is third in scoring, averaging 8.5 points per game. Valek has started every game in her career at Purdue and is the all-time leader in games started (128) and was named to this season's All-Big Ten Team. The Boilermakers are a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament and will begin play in the West Region on Sunday, March 21 at approximately 9:30 p.m. EST. Valek will also participate as a member of the WBCA College All-Star Challenge Team, as part of the "WBCA Night of All-Stars" on Saturday, April 3 at Tulane University's Fogelman Arena. This year's senior college all-star team will take on USA Basketball Women's Senior National Team. Valek will be presented her award on Sunday, April 4 at the State Farm Wade Trophy and State Farm/WBCA Players of the Year Luncheon presented by Jostens. The luncheon is a part of the WBCA National Convention which is held annually in conjunction with the Women's Final Four. The luncheon will be held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. The Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award is named in honor of James Naismith's daughter-in-law. A panel of representatives from the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) selects the recipient. To earn the award, the recipient must demonstrate leadership, character, loyalty, all-around basketball ability and excellence in the classroom. Founded in 1981, the WBCA promotes women's basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport and to foster and promote the development of the game in all of its aspects as an amateur sport or women and girls. For more information about the WBCA, please visit WBCA.org. Previous Winners of the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award 1984 Kim Mulkey, Louisiana Tech |
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- WBCA -
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