April 10, 2008

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Ten senior student-athletes, who not only are among the nation's top softball players but also excel off the field, have been selected as finalists for the 2008 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the softball division. Virginia Tech senior pitcher Angela Tincher is one of those to be selected for the prestigious honor.

Nationwide balloting begins immediately to determine this year's winner, which will receive the award during the NCAA Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City, Okla.

The finalists were chosen from a list of 30 candidates based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete. These four primary areas of criteria include: classroom, community, character and competition.

Tincher, a two-time All-American on the field and a two-time Academic All-American, currently sports a cumulative GPA of over 3.8 in finance and will graduate this May. She has already been accepted into Tech's MBA program and plans to pursue that degree next year. She is the nation's leader in strikeouts and is third in the nation in ERA. Last month, she was the No. 3 overall pick in the NPF Draft and also no-hit the U.S. National Softball Team in Tech's 1-0 exhibition win.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award has developed into the nation's premier tribute to college seniors. The award, which launched in 2001 with college basketball, is now in its second year for softball. Arizona outfielder Caitlin Lowe won the inaugural softball division award in 2007.

The 2008 finalists are: Callista Balko, University of Arizona, Beth Boden, Tennessee Tech University, Sara Dyer, University of Tulsa, Lauren Eckermann, University of Oklahoma, Rachel Folden, Marshall University, Jordan Praytor, University of Alabama, Megan Rhodes, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Anjelica Selden, UCLA, Angela Tincher, Virginia Tech and Sandy Vojik, DePaul University.

These 10 names will be placed on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award softball ballot for a nationwide vote beginning April 10 and concluding May 9. Fan balloting, available on the award's official website www.seniorclassaward.com, will be combined with votes from coaches, media and sponsors to determine the recipient of the award. Fans can vote for up to three players one time per day.