NiJaree Canady, a junior from Texas Tech University, has been named the Honda Sport Award winner for Softball, for the second season in a row as announced today by Chris Voelz, Executive Director of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA).
The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the CWSA for the past 49 years to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports, signifying “the best of the best in collegiate athletics.” The recipient of the sport award becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious 2025 Honda Cup, which will be presented during a live telecast on CBS Sports Network on June 30, at 7 pm ET, in New York City.
Canady was selected via a nationwide vote of administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools. The other finalists for this year’s award were Jordyn Bahl (Nebraska), Bri Ellis (Arkansas) and Karlyn Pickens (Tennessee).
“Winning the Honda Award is an incredible honor that not only represents me, but also my teammates, coaches and family,” said Canady. “I am so grateful to represent this sport!”
Canady, a junior pitcher and utility player from Topeka, Kan., earned the same honor in 2024 and was named a Top Three finalist, narrowly missing out on the prestigious Honda Cup. She was named the 2025 NFCA Pitcher of the Year and a Top 3 finalist for USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year. She is a two-time Conference Pitcher of the Year, earning the honor in both the Big 12 (2025) and Pac-12 (2024), and is a three-time First Team All-Conference selection across both leagues.
Canady is also a two-time NFCA First Team All-American and NFCA All-Region First Team honoree. This season, she led Texas Tech to a historic year that included its first Big 12 regular season and tournament titles, its first national seed, and the program's first-ever trip to the Women's College World Series, finishing runner-up in the best-of-three championship finals. She was named the 2025 Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player, a member of the 2025 WCWS All-Tournament team and has earned 13 total Conference Pitcher of the Week honors across her Big 12 and Pac-12 career.
Canady led the nation in wins (34), ranked second nationally in ERA (1.11) and strikeouts (319), third in hits allowed (3.88), and was fourth in strikes-to-walk ratio (6.62).
The CWSA, now in its 49th year, continues to honor the nation’s top NCAA women athletes for their exceptional athletic achievements, leadership, academic excellence, and dedication to community service. Since the inception of its partnership in 1986, Honda has contributed over $3.4 million in institutional grants to support women’s athletics programs at the universities of award winners and nominees.
About Honda Corporate Social Responsibility and the Honda USA Foundation
For more than 65 years in the U.S., Honda has been committed to making positive contributions to the communities where its associates live and work. The company’s mission is to create products and services that help people fulfill their life’s potential, while conducting business in a sustainable manner and fostering an inclusive workplace. Advancing its corporate social responsibility, Honda and the Honda USA Foundation support this direction through giving focused on education, the environment, mobility, traffic safety, and community.
Learn more at http://csr.honda.com/.