April 26, 2016 – Senior All-American Bridget Sloan (Pittsboro, Ind.) from the University of Florida was named the Honda Sport Award winner for gymnastics today as announced by Chris Voelz, Executive Director of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA).
This is the second Honda Sport Award honor for Sloan after being named the winner her freshman year in 2013 and the second-straight win by a Florida Gator after Kytra Hunter captured the award in 2015.
The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the CWSA for the past 40 years to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA- sanctioned sports and signifies “the best of the best in collegiate athletics”. With this honor, Sloan becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious 2016 Honda Cup which will be presented on a live telecast on June 27, 2016, in the Founders’ Room at the Galen Center on the campus of the University of Southern California in downtown Los, Angeles.
“So honored to again receive the Honda Award on behalf of the University of Florida”, stated Sloan. “I loved my collegiate experience. Thank you to my Gator teammates, coaches and also the Florida fans for all the support throughout my career.”
Sloan was chosen by a vote of administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools. Finalists included Lindsay Mable (Minnesota), Nina McGee (Denver) and Elizabeth Price (Stanford).
Sloan led the Gators in 2016 with 27 event titles (nine all-around, seven bars, five beam, four floor, two vault) and is the program’s career leader for All-Around wins (27), event titles (95), All-America honors (16) and 10.0 marks (8). She is the first Gator and only gymnast in 2016 to earn All-America first-team honors in each of the five events in NCAA Championships’ competition and is the only gymnast in nation to earn All-America honors in each event of the National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches (NACGC) regular-season awards (first team – all-around, bars, beam, floor; second team – vault).
The 2016 NCAA all-around champion, she also shared titles for uneven bars and balance beams giving her a Florida career record of six NCAA event titles. Her six titles are third all-time in the 35-year history of the NCAA Gymnastics Championships. She also finished as the top all-arounder in the 2016 NCAA Super Six and was the Super Six all-around leader three of her four seasons.
"I’m so happy for Bridget – she’s been an amazing ambassador for the sport throughout her long career,” said Florida head coach Jenny Rowland. “What a leader and competitor Bridget was for this Gator team – she always gave her best. Thank you Honda for providing a platform to honor the many achievements of these amazing young women."
Three student-athletes from the sport of gymnastics have gone on to win the prestigious Honda Cup, Kim Jacob (2014-University of Alabama), Courtney Kupets (2009-University of Georgia) and Missy Marlowe (1992-University of Utah).
The CWSA, celebrating its 40th year, has honored the nation’s top NCAA women athletes recognizing superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its sponsorship in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3.0 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women’s athletics programs at the institutions.