OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — LSU senior guard Allison Hightower has been named one of 10 national finalists for the 2009-10 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award for NCAA women’s basketball, which recognizes excellence both on and off the court, it was announced Wednesday afternoon.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – classroom, character, community and competition.
Nationwide balloting begins immediately and concludes March 22 to determine the winner. Fan balloting will be available on the award’s official Web site, www.seniorCLASSaward.com, as well as through text messaging. Fans can text WBBALL to 74567 to vote for women’s finalists. These votes will be combined with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in SchoolTM, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 women’s candidates who were announced in October.
“It’s an honor to be considered a finalist for such a great award because it also takes into account what you do in the community and in school and not just on the court,” Hightower said. “We’ve always been proud of what we do in the community as Lady Tigers. To have the fans involved in the voting is great because they are the ones who see us not only out on the court but in school visits and community service projects.”
Joining Hightower as a finalist are: Jayne Appel, Stanford University; Amy Beggin, University of New Mexico; Joy Cheek, Duke University; Alysha Clark, Middle Tennessee State University; Tyra Grant, Pennsylvania State University; Kelsey Griffin, University of Nebraska, Lincoln; Ashley Houts, University of Georgia; Ashley Sweat, Kansas State University; and Bianca Thomas, Ole Miss.
Hightower, a National Player of the Year candidate, leads LSU in points per game (17.1), minutes per game (30.6), 3-point field goal percentage (38.0) and steals per game (2.3). She ranks fifth in the SEC in overall scoring and is tied for third in scoring in conference games. Hightower has twice earned SEC Player of the Week honors this season and she has put up six 20-point or more games.
The 17th all-time leading scorer in LSU with 1,285 points, Hightower is once again on pace to put her name in the record books. No guard in school history has blocked more shots than Hightower with 87. She is closing in on the LSU all-time top-five in that category. The Arlington, Texas, native recently entered the school’s all-time top 10 in games played with 125.
Equally impressive has been Hightower’s efforts in the classroom and the community. She’s a member of the All-Academic SEC team. Hightower has visited Baton Rouge area schools her entire career and been a leader in the Lady Tigers’ “Grades, Perseverance and Education” (GPA) program that was launched last summer. The GPA program was established as a partnership between LSU women’s basketball and the East Baton Rouge Parish School System. LSU will play in the inaugural “GPA Game” to honor education this Sunday at 1 p.m. when the Lady Tigers host Ole Miss in the Maravich Center.
Hightower spent Monday afternoon in classrooms and the gymnasium at Southeast Middle School where she addressed students on the importance of hard work and getting an education. The senior was adopted by the school and she has routinely made visits since the fall.
Hightower seeks to become the second Lady Tiger in history to claim the prestigious award. Seimone Augustus captured the honor in 2006. Previous winners include Sue Bird of Connecticut (2002), LaToya Thomas of Mississippi State (2003), Alana Beard of Duke (2004), Kendra Wecker of Kansas State (2005), Alison Bales of Duke (2007), Candice Wiggins of Stanford (2008) and Courtney Paris of Oklahoma (2009).
2009-10 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award
Women’s Basketball Finalists
Name, Position, School
Jayne Appel, Center, Stanford University
Amy Beggin, Guard, University of New Mexico
Joy Cheek, Forward/Guard, Duke University
Alysha Clark, Forward, Middle Tennessee State University
Tyra Grant, Guard, Pennsylvania State University
Kelsey Griffin, Forward, University of Nebraska, Lincoln
Allison Hightower, Guard, LSU
Ashley Houts, Guard, University of Georgia
Ashley Sweat, Forward, Kansas State University
Bianca Thomas, Guard, University of Mississippi
2009-10 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award
Men’s Basketball Finalists
Name, Position, School
Matt Bouldin, Guard, Gonzaga University
Da’Sean Butler, Forward, West Virginia University
Marquis Hall, Guard, Lehigh University
Luke Harangody, Forward, University of Notre Dame
Damion James, Forward, University of Texas at Austin
Adam Koch, Forward, University of Northern Iowa
Chris Kramer, Guard, Purdue University
Raymar Morgan, Forward, Michigan State University
Jon Scheyer, Guard, Duke University
Josh Young, Guard, Drake University
ABOUT THE AWARD
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in SchoolTM, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award honors the attributes of senior student-athletes in four areas: classroom, community, character and competition. The award program is designed exclusively for college seniors who are utilizing their complete athletic eligibility, remaining committed to their university and pursuing the many rewards that a senior season can bring. Sportscaster Dick Enberg, Honorary Chairman of the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, first conceived the idea of an award for seniors in 2001 in response to the growing trend of men’s basketball players leaving school early for the NBA. The award program has expanded the past two years to include a total of nine NCAA® Division I sports – football, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s ice hockey, men’s lacrosse, baseball and softball in addition to men’s and women’s basketball. The award is sponsored by Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA®, and managed by Premier Sports Management. For more information, visit www.seniorCLASSaward.com.
ABOUT LOWE’S
With fiscal year 2008 sales of $48.2 billion, Lowe’s Companies, Inc. is a FORTUNE® 50 company that serves approximately 14 million customers a week at more than 1,675 home improvement stores in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1946 and based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe’s is the second-largest home improvement retailer in the world. For more information, visit Lowes.com.
ABOUT THE NCAA
The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletics opportunities for more than 400,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities. Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships in Divisions I, II and III sports. Visit www.NCAA.org and www.NCAA.com for more details about the Association, its goals and members and corporate partnerships that help support programs for student-athletes.