NEWARK, DE -- Tyresa Smith, a senior guard on the women’s basketball team, was honored as the 2006-07 University of Delaware Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year at the annual UD Women’s Intercollegiate Athletics Awards Banquet held Thursday night at the Bob Carpenter Center.

Smith (Dover, DE/Polytech), who is currently in training camp with the WBNA’s Phoenix Mercury after being drafted with the No. 18 pick, was named the Colonial Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season and was a first team All-CAA selection this year.

She led the league and ranked 17th in Division I with 19.8 points per game, while her 632 points this season set a school single season record. Smith finished her career second all-time at Delaware with 1,635 points and is the school’s career leader with 342 steals. In addition to her scoring, she also pulled 7.5 rebounds per game and was second on the team with 82 steals as a senior.

A two-time first team All-CAA selection, Smith was named to the Kodak/WBCA All-Region 2 Team, becoming the first player in Delaware history to earn that honor. A four-year standout, Smith led Delaware to a four-year record of 92-30, three appearances in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament, and a berth in the 2007 NCAA Tournament, only the second NCAA Tournament appearance in UD history.

Delaware posted a record of 26-6 during the season, setting a school record for wins in the regular season with 25.

The Outstanding Senior Female Athlete Award is selected from a vote of the head coaches of Delaware’s 12 women’s intercollegiate sports.

In other awards presented Thursday evening:

CROSS COUNTRY: Sophomore Julia Somers (Haverford, PA/Haverford) earned the UD Alumni Association Most Valuable Player Award for women’s cross country. Somers, a first team All-CAA selection, won the second Delaware Invitational for the Blue Hens and was also Delaware’s top finisher at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional, ECAC Championships, CAA Championships, Griak Invitational, and Paul Short Invitational. Her 10th place finish at the CAA Championships helped Delaware finish fourth in the team standings.

FIELD HOCKEY: Sophomore Casey Howard (Camden, DE/Caesar Rodney) was named the UD Alumni Association MVP for field hockey. Howard, a first team National Field Hockey Coaches Association All-Mid Atlantic Region selection, led the Blue Hens with nine goals and 19 points this season. She ranked eighth in the league in goals per game and recorded her first career hat trick in the regular season finale victory over La Salle. She helped lead the Blue Hens to the league playoffs for the 10th time in the last 11 seasons this fall.

INDOOR TRACK & FIELD: Freshman Cristine Marquez (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) earned the UD Alumni Association Most Valuable Player for women’s indoor track and field. Marquez set a school record when she finished eighth in the 400 meters in 55.74 to earn All-East honors at the ECAC Championships. She won the 800 meters at both the John Covert Classic and Delaware’s Thomson Invitational. She also earned All-East honors in the 400 meters outdoors and set the school record in the 400 meters (55.34) and 4 x 400 meter relay (3:49.29).

LACROSSE: Senior Katie Muth (Ellicott City, MD/Seton Keough) was named the UD Alumni Association MVP for women’s lacrosse after leading the Blue Hens with 37 goals scored. A second team All-CAA selection, Muth ranked second on the team with 50 points and was named the CAA Player of the Week on April 2 after recording a career-high seven points in a win over Towson. She led the Blue Hens to a record of 11-6, a top 20 national ranking, and a berth in the CAA semifinals. She scored 82 career goals in just over three full seasons.

ROWING: Senior Melanie Turner (Woodbridge, VA/Woodbridge) earned the UD Alumni Association MVP for women’s rowing. Turner was a member of the Blue Hen varsity eights boat that finished third at the Murphy Cup and Kerr Cup/CAA Championships. The varsity eights also placed fourth at the Dad Vail Regatta, Knecht Cup, and Saint Joseph’s Quad Meet, and sixth at the ECAC Metro Championships. She led the Blue Hens to a second place team finish at the CAA Championships after leading the squad to the title in 2006.

OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD: Senior Asha Quant (Willingboro, NJ/Holy Cross - at right) was named the UD Alumni Association MVP for women’s outdoor track and field. Quant won the 200 meters at the Towson Invitational and Rider Invitational, and won the 400 meters at the Delaware Open. She also placed third in the long jump at the CAA Championships and 13th in the event at the ECAC Championships. Quant was a member of the 4 x 100 meter relay team that won its event at the Rider Invitational and finished 18th at the ECAC Championships, while the 4 x 400 meter relay team won its event at the Delaware Open, placed fourth at the CAA Championships, and was 12th at the ECAC Championships. She set school records in the long jump (19-8) and 4 x 400 meter relay (3:49.29) during the outdoor season.

SOCCER: Senior goalkeeper Bonnie Mills (Bear, DE/Caravel) earned the UD Alumni Association MVP for women’s soccer. Mills, a second team All-CAA selection, was named to the Delaware Blue Hen Adidas Classic and Army All-Tournament teams during the season as Delaware went 8-8-3, including starting the season 5-0-1. She started all 19 games in the Blue Hen goal, making 99 saves while posting a 1.18 goals against average and five shutouts. She played every minute of every game until the season finale.

SOFTBALL: Senior pitcher Carolynn Sloat (Ballston Lake, NY/Shenendehowa) was named the UD Alumni Association MVP for softball. Sloat went 10-16 with a 2.19 earned run average this season while striking out 118 batters and recording four shutouts. Sloat finished her career as the Blue Hens career leader with 146 appearances, 852.1 innings pitched, 63 wins, and 611 strikeouts.

SWIMMING & DIVING: Sophomore Maryann Walker (Ellicott City, MD/Mount Hebron) earned the UD Alumni Association MVP award for women’s swimming and diving. Walker won the 200 backstroke at the CAA Championships to earn All-CAA honors and was a member of the 800 freestyle relay team that finished fourth in its event. Walker, who was twice named the CAA Swimmer of the Week, won the 200 freestyle and was a member of four winning relay teams at the Loyola Invitational. She helped Delaware tie a school record for dual wins at 13-2 and place fifth at the CAA Championships for the second straight year. She also set school records in the 200 backstroke (2:02.68) and 200 freestyle relay (1:37.43).

TENNIS: Junior Alexa Dragonette (Wyomissing, PA/Wilson) was named the UD Alumni Association MVP for women’s tennis. Dragonette won a team-high 20 singles matches this season by posting a 20-7 record. She also went a combined 16-11 in doubles play while teaming with Brittany Barsky, Julie Schiller, and Elena Berry. Her career singles wins total of 41-21 ranks No. 15 on the all-time UD career wins list.

VOLLEYBALL: Sophomore Kelly Gibson (Taos, NM/Taos) earned the UD Alumni Association MVP Award for volleyball. Gibson, a first team All-CAA selection, was named to the Delaware Invitational All-Tournament Team and earned Wisconsin-Green Bay Tournament MVP Honors. The CAA Player of the Week on October 30, Gibson ranked second on the Blue Hens with 505 kills, 45 services aces and 472 digs, and was third with 53 blocks. She led the Blue Hens to a record of 21-9, including an all-time UD best start of 12-0, and a berth in the CAA Tournament semifinals.

Senior field hockey player Kaili Kao (State College/State College, PA) was the recipient of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Medal of Merit presented to the senior female student-athlete letterwinner with the highest grade point index. A senior co-captain and a three-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association National Academic Team member, Kao carries a 3.82 gpa as an international relations major.

Senior track and field standout Daniella Price (Boothwyn, PA/Chichester) was the winner of the Dr. Janice Jordan Award presented by UD Student Services for Athletes to a student-athlete who has made outstanding progress academically while at Delaware. A four-year letterwinner, Price returned this season after breaking her leg a year ago and led the Blue Hens to a school-record time and 12th place finish in the 4 x 400 meter relay and 18th place showing in the 4 x 100 meter relay at the outdoor ECAC championships this spring.

Senior rower Betsy Seeger (Millersville, MD/Archbishop Spaulding) received the Outstanding Contributor Award presented by the UD Student Services for Athletes department. A four-year letterwinner, she led the UD women’s rowing team to two Colonial Athletic Association team championships and served as the secretary for the UD Student-Athlete Advisory Council. She was active in several community service projects and is an honor student as a hotel, restaurant, and institutional management major

Delaware senior women’s basketball player Alena Koshansky (Fairfax, VA/Chantilly) was the winner of the Mary Ann Hitchens Award named in honor of Delaware’s long-time senior associate director of athletics who retired last year. The award is presented to a UD senior who exemplifies the characteristics of hard work, dedication, fairness, and striving for excellence that was Hitchens’ hallmark. Koshansky was a four-year starter at point guard for the UD women’s basketball team and led the team to a 26-6 record and a berth in the NCAA Tournament this past season. A co-captain, Koshansky is an honor student as a sport management major and led the team with 106 assists this season.

Tom Coder received the ECAC Appreciation Award presented by the UD athletics department for overall contributions to the program. Coder, a former freshman football coach at Delaware, is the UD Admissions Office liaison to the Blue Hens athletics department.