North Carolina standouts Rachel Dawson and Tyler Hansbrough are two of thesix finalists for 2008 ESPY awards, presented by ESPN to the best collegiateathletes. Dawson led the Tar Heel field hockey team to an undefeated recordand 2007 national championship and was named National Player of the Year.Hansbrough also won National Player of the Year honors after leading UNC toa school-record 36 wins, ACC championship and Final Four.
The 16th annual ESPYs will be hosted by Justin Timberlake, who will bejoined by an all-star lineup of top athletes and entertainers to celebratethe best sports stories of the year. The two-hour event will move to the newNOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE, a world-class 7,100-seat venue located across thestreet from STAPLES Center in downtown Los Angeles. The 2008 ESPYs will betelevised July 20 at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Fan voting for the ESPYs runs through 11:59 p.m. ET on July 12, and The 2008ESPYs will be televised Sunday, July 20, at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN HD.In addition,for the fifth consecutive year, fans will determine the winnersin 37 categories (excluding special awards) by voting online at www.espys.tvand, for the first time, via mobile phone at www.espn.mobi. Last year, morethan 12.5 million votes were tabulated.
BEST MALE COLLEGE ATHLETE Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina BasketballNamed 2007-08 Collegiate Player of the Year by The Associated Press, theNABC, the USBWA Š Won Wooden Award and Naismith Award Š Averaged 22.6 ppg.,10.2 rpg. and 54 field goal percentage.
Tim Tebow, Florida FootballHeisman Trophy winnerŠ Became the first college football player to throw for20+ touchdowns and run for 20+ touchdowns in the same season Š Threw 32touchdown passes and only six interceptions in 2007 Š completed 67 percentof his pass attempts.
Michael Beasley, Kansas State BasketballFinished third in Division I in scoring (26.2 ppg.) and first in rebounding(12.4 rpg.) during 2007-08 season Š Had 30+ points and 10+ rebounds on 13occasions during season Š Drafted #2 overall by the Miami Heat.
BEST FEMALE COLLEGE ATHLETE Rachel Dawson, North Carolina Field HockeyNational Player of the Year Š She led the Tar Heels in goals this year with19, captaining her team to the NCAA title and a 24-0 season Š Named ACCDefensive Player of the Year for the second time, the two-time All-Americanwas also named ACC Tournament MVP.
Candace Parker, Tennessee BasketballLed Tennessee Lady Vols to back-to-back NCAA championships Š Averaged 21.3points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.4 blocks and 2.3 steals in 38 gamesduring 2007-08 season while leading her team to a 36-2 record.
Angela Tincher, Virginia Tech SoftballThe pitcher finished career third on all-time NCAA strikeout list Š Led herteam to its first-ever NCAA College World Series this year after a 38-10season in which she maintained the nation¹s lowest ERA (0.63), with anation-leading 13.8 strikeouts per seven innings.
