Northwestern University's Taylor Thornton Receives Honda Sports Award for Lacrosse, Nicole Gibbs Receives the 2012 Honda Sports Award for Tennis

LOS ANGELES--June 5, 2012: The key player in a historic sweep, Stanford University's Nicole Gibbs has been named the 2012 Honda Sports Award recipient for tennis. Gibbs bested teammate Mallory Burdette for the 2012 NCAA singles title, then joined up with Burdette to win the collegiate doubles--the only time in the men's or women's game that players have faced each other in a final and then teamed up for the doubles title match. Gibbs' selection by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards program recognizes her as the country's top female athlete in her sport.

Gibbs, a two-time All-American and Stanford sophomore, became only the third Cardinal to acquire singles and doubles titles in the same season. The doubles victory was the third consecutive championship for the school. In the match against Burdette, which lasted three hours, Gibbs came back from a first-set loss and deficits of 4-1 and 5-2 to become the first Stanford player to win the NCAA singles title since 2004 and the 15th in school history.

A graduate of the Crossroads School in Santa Monica, Calif., Gibbs competes in WTA and ITF events while maintaining an amateur status. In 2010 she was ranked 356th by the WTA. In 2007, she took the number one spot for the gold medal-winning U.S. 14-and-under team for World Team Tennis.

In LaCrosse, Taylor Thornton, who scored the final goal in Northwestern University's 8-6 victory over Syracuse for the 2012 NCAA championship, is the Honda Sports Award winner for lacrosse. Thornton's selection by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards program recognizes her as the country's top female athlete in her sport.

Thornton was named the 2012 American Lacrosse Conference Player of the Year and is a two-time first-team All-American. She earned All-Tournament Team honors at both the ALC and NCAA championships in 2011 and 2012. As a sophomore she started in all 23 games for the Wildcats and in all 22 games as a freshman, and has been a major factor in Northwestern's lacrosse dominance: The Wildcats have won the national championship in women's lacrosse seven of the last eight years.

Thornton attended the Hockaday School in Dallas, Texas, where she was a two-time Texas Player of the Year. A junior at Northwestern, she is majoring in communication studies.

The Honda Sports Award is presented annually to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. As a Honda prize recipient, Gibbs becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious Honda Cup. She was chosen by a vote of coaches from 1,000 NCAA member schools. Finalists included Burdette, Beatrice Capra of Duke University, and Allie Will of the University of Florida. Joining Gibbs on the current roster of 2012 Honda Sports Award winners are Sheila Reid of Villanova University (Cross Country), Megan Frazer of the University of Maryland (Field Hockey), Teresa Noyola of Stanford University (Soccer), Alex Jupiter of the University of Southern California (Volleyball), Caitlin Leverenz of the University of California, Berkeley (Swimming & Diving), Brittney Griner of Baylor University (Basketball), Kytra Hunter of the University of Florida (Gymnastics), Brooke Pancake of the University of Alabama (Golf), Taylor Thornton of Northwestern University (Lacrosse) and 2012 Honda Inspiration Award Winner, Elena Delle Donne of the University of Delaware (Basketball).