INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA has selected the recipients for its 2004 NCAA Sportsmanship Awards, which honor student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through good sportsmanship and ethical behavior.

The honorees are:

 *

      National Female Award Recipient - Chanda Gunn; Northeastern University; America East Conference; women's ice hockey (Division I)
    *

      National Co-Male Award Recipient - Danny Gathings; High Point University; Big South Conference; men's basketball (Division I)
    *

      National Co-Male Award Recipient - Mesa State College football team; Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference; football (Division II)

Chanda Gunn  Danny Gathings  Mesa State Football Team
Chanda Gunn  Danny Gathings  Mesa State College Football Team
Click on an image to download a larger version.

Gunn, Gathings and the Mesa State College football team will receive their awards later this fall on their respective school campuses. The recipients also will be recognized by the NCAA during the NCAA Convention in January in Dallas and at the Citizenship Through Sports Alliance (CTSA) Awards Reception during summer 2005.

Each athletics conference and independent institution is eligible to nominate one male and one female student-athlete for the NCAA Sportsmanship Awards. Forty-four athletics conferences selected student-athletes as their conference sportsmanship award recipients for this year, and then submitted those student-athlete names to the NCAA as candidates for the national female and male 2004 NCAA Sportsmanship Awards. Award criteria states that student-athletes must have displayed a demonstrable act of sportsmanship; demonstrated proper and ethical behavior in his/her daily participation in intercollegiate athletics; demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting; and be in good academic standing. Although the awards are created for individual student-athletes, teams also may be considered for the award.

The NCAA has been vocal and active in its push for better sportsmanship, having partnered with the Southeastern Conference last year on hosting a national forum to discuss sportsmanship, and partnering with athletics conferences to host the NCAA Sportsmanship Awards. The Sportsmanship Awards replace what was formerly the NCAA Sportsperson of the Year awards, which had similar criteria that included exhibiting good sportsmanship.

"I believe the acts of our award recipients exemplify the type of sportsmanship we want to see from student-athletes and coaches throughout the nation," said Dr. Woody Gibson, chair of the NCAA Committee on Sportsmanship and Ethical Behavior, which reviews all of the award nominations. "Sportsmanship is hard to define, but these acts went beyond the expected norm. I hope that more people, in sports and beyond, will consider these great acts and base their thinking and behavior on doing what is right."

Gunn is often recognized for her good character both on and off the ice. She is a three-time finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award, which is presented to the nation's top collegiate women's ice hockey player, and was awarded the Hockey Humanitarian Award this year, representing college ice hockey's finest citizen. Gunn's coaches, teammates and peers have commented on her good nature; well-mannered personality; the respect she shows toward others; and how often she goes beyond the standard with her positive actions. She also has been active in her community as a volunteer coach and with local charities. Gunn completed her collegiate career at Northeastern as team captain of its women's ice hockey squad, and was selected as a Co-MVP and voted first-team All-American by the American Hockey Coaches Association. A native of Huntington Beach, California, Gunn has completed her athletic eligibility at Northeastern and is in the final year of her academic studies in athletic training.

Gathings was lauded for relinquishing his 2004 Big South Basketball Tournament Most Valuable Player trophy to Liberty University men's basketball student-athlete, Larry Blair. Gathings and Blair, both all-conference players, led their squads to the Big South basketball championship game where Liberty beat High Point, 89-44, and broke the conference record for largest margin of victory. However, Gathings was selected as the MVP at the conclusion of the tournament. Gathings felt that Blair, who scored a career-high 29 points in the championship victory, was more deserving of the MVP trophy and decided to present it to him. Gathings' coaches regularly single him out for his unselfishness and for his consistent effort in practice and games, and they note how he takes time to assist his teammates with perfecting their basketball skills. A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Gathings is pursuing a sports management degree at High Point and will enter his senior year when school resumes in the fall.

The Mesa State College football team exemplified the spirit of competition in its Division II playoff game versus the University of Central Oklahoma, which was conducted in the midst of a Colorado snowstorm. During the competition, Mesa State alerted game officials that Central Oklahoma was wearing illegal equipment (size of football cleats), which immediately brought the game to a halt. Rules state that any players found to be wearing illegal equipment would be disqualified, which would have resulted in Central Oklahoma forfeiting the game and Mesa State automatically advancing to the quarterfinals. After a long discussion, the Mesa State football program elected to let the Central Oklahoma football team change its cleats so the competition could resume, thus allowing the winning team to advance to the quarterfinals by virtue of an on-field victory instead of a game forfeit. The game concluded with a win for Central Oklahoma. However, the Mesa State football team was recognized by media, university officials and its opponent for its tremendous example of sportsmanship in the spirit of competition.

-30-