DATE: June 21, 2004

NEWARK, DE -- The University of Delaware athletics department has announced the inaugural winners of the Blue Hen Team Sportsmanship Awards for the 2003-04 season.

The winners, one from each of Delaware's 23 intercollegiate sports teams, were honored this year by the UD athletics department and give to those student-athletes who have been outstanding role models and displayed outstanding sportsmanship towards their teammates, coaches, opponents, and game officials.

"We are extremely proud to honor these individuals for their efforts in showing true sportsmanship throughout the year," said University of Delaware Director of Athletics Edgar N. Johnson. "These special student-athletes have shown that you can be an outstanding competitor on the field and still accomplish your goals with great character and sportsmanship while showing respect to your opponents and officials."

The winners, who were selected by their head coaches, are Jennifer Krepps (women's soccer), Morgan Funsten (men's soccer), Leah Geib (field hockey), Niecy Taylor (volleyball), Erin Gemmill (women's cross country), Christopher Ward (men's cross country), Leon Clarke (football), Mike Ames (men's basketball), Tracey Howell (women's basketball), John Morgan (indoor track and field), double winner Sarah Bochet (indoor track and field/outdoor track and field), Jill Fitzgerald (women's swimming), Adam Goldstein (men's swimming), Steve Van Note (baseball), Alison Harrington (rowing), Jerome Holder (outdoor track and field), Ashley Green (softball), B.J. Jaworski (golf), Lauren Carrigan (women's lacrosse), Matt Alrich (men's lacrosse), Adam Liebman (men's tennis), and Stefanie Riddle (women's tennis).

Krepps, a sophomore defender from Lansdale, PA (North Penn), played in 13 games with nine starts this year and scored two goals for the UD women's soccer team, leading the squad to a berth in the Colonial Athletic Association quarterfinals; Funsten, a senior goalkeeper from King of Prussia, PA (Upper Merion), played in three games with two starts in 2003 and posted 20 saves to go with a 1.44 goals allowed per game average; Geib, a junior midfielder from Schwenksville, PA (Souderton), was a second team All-Region selection in field hockey, led the squad to the CAA championship game, and was named the CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year for her sport; and Taylor, a sophomore middle hitter from Albuquerque, NM (Cibola), was second on the team in kills (2.86 per game), hitting percentage (.246), and blocks (.56 per game).

Gemmill, a graduate student from Lancaster, PA (Penn Manor), led the UD women's cross country team in all but one meet and placed 26th at the CAA championships; Ward, a senior from Middletown, DE (Middletown), competed in five meets for the UD men harriers and was 19th at the Towson Invitational; Clarke, a senior cornerback from Canarsie, NY (New York, NY), posted 54 tackles and two interceptions in leading the Blue Hen football team the the 2003 NCAA I-AA national title; and Ames, a senior guard from Phoenixville, PA (St. Pius X), led the UD men's basketball team in scoring for the third straight year with 15.3 points per game and earned second team All-CAA honors; Howell, a senior guard/forward from Newark, DE (A.I. duPont), served as captain and led the UD women's basketball squad to a 19-10 record this past season when she averaged 5.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game; Morgan, a co-captain for the men's indoor track and field team, is a Verizon/CoSIDA Academic All-American nominee and qualified for the IC4A championships in the 4 x 400 meter relay this past spring; Bochet was the lone double-winner, placed seventh in the 800 meters at the CAA women's outdoor track and field championships this past spring; Fitzgerald was a four-year standout and swam a leg of the champion 400 medley and 800 freestyle relay teams at the CAA women's swimming and diving championships; and Goldstein served as captain of the UD men's swimming and diving team and placed ninth in the 800 freestyle relay and 13th in the 1,650 freestyle at the CAA championships.

Van Note, a senior captain and outfielder/first baseman for the UD baseball team, batted .333, hit 12 home runs, and knocked in a team-high 58 runs to lead Delaware to a 33-24 record and a second place finish at the CAA Tournament; Harrington was a member of the Novice Eights squad that captured the unofficial CAA women's rowing championship this spring; Holder placed second in the 110 meter high hurdles and third in the 400 meter hurdles at this spring's CAA outdoor track and field championships; Green was a backup catcher for the UD softball team, leading the squad to a second place finish at the CAA tournament; Jaworski averaged 84.4 per round for the UD golf team this past season and had a sixth place finish at the Wesley Invitational in the fall; Carrigan started all 16 games on defense for the Delaware women's lacrosse squad and led the team with 44 groundballs; Alrich, a senior co-captain for the nationally-ranked Blue Hen men's lacrosse squad, earned first team All-CAA honors after leading the team in scoring for the second straight year with 34 goals and 12 assists; Liebman posted a 14-11 record as the Delaware men's tennis team's No. 3 singles player; and Riddle posted the best singles record for the UD women's tennis team in 2003-04, posting a mark of 14-7 as the team's No. 6 player.