Junior Robin Anderson (Matawan, N.J.) from UCLA was named the Honda Sports Award winner for Women's Tennis as announced by Chris Voelz, Executive Director of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) today.
The Honda Sports Award is presented annually by the CWSA to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA- sanctioned sports and signifies “the best of the best in collegiate athletics”. With this honor, Anderson becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious 2014 Honda Cup. Anderson was chosen by a vote of administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools. Finalists included Lynn Chi (California), Danielle Collins (Virginia) and Jamie Loeb (North Carolina).
The Honda Cup winner will be announced during the live telecast of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards show presented by Honda at 8 pm EST, on Monday, June 30, at the USC Founders Club at Galen Center in Los Angeles, Calif.
"We had a great season and winning a national championship was a dream come true," Anderson said. "Now, to win the Honda Award to top it off is just icing on the cake. It's always tough to accept individual awards because you feel like the people who helped get you there don't get the credit they deserve. I obviously couldn't have won this award without my coaches, teammates and family who have supported me throughout my career. I'm humbled and honored to receive one of the top awards in all of college athletics.”
Anderson was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year and closed the season ranked second in the nation in singles and fifth nationally as part of her doubles team. She has earned All-America honors in both singles and doubles in each of her three seasons with UCLA and is a three-time first-team All-Pac-12 selection.
The junior helped lead UCLA to the NCAA title this year posting victories in both singles and doubles in the final match. She was named the NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player and completed her season with a 34-6 singles record and a 34-2 doubles mark.
“We are absolutely thrilled that Robin has earned such prestigious honor as the Honda Award,” UCLA coach Stella Sampras Webster said. “When you consider some of the big names who have won this award, it makes it even more special. Robin is just a great representative of what UCLA tennis is all about. She is a tireless worker, a great teammate and someone whose dedication to our program is second to none. Having a player like Robin is one of the main reasons we have been so successful these last few years. I think it's fantastic that she is being recognized for what an outstanding player, and person, she is.”
The CWSA presents the Honda Sports Award annually to top women student-athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. Honda Sports award winners will be presented with the honor during on-campus presentations throughout the year and all Honda Sports award winners become a finalist for the prestigious 2014 Honda Cup award presented in June.
THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards has honored the nation’s top NCAA women athletes for 37 years, recognizing superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its sponsorship in 1986, Honda has provided more than $2.8 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women’s athletics programs at the institutions.