Sara Daavettila Named a Honda Sport Award Finalist in Women’s Tennis

Fresh off becoming just the fifth Tar Heel woman to ever reach the semifinals of the NCAA Singles Tournament last week, UNC senior Sara Daavettila was selected Tuesday as one of four finalists for the Honda Sport Award in women’s tennis.

The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually for 45 years to the top women’s athletes across 12 different NCAA-sanctioned sports.

Daavettila joins field hockey star Erin Matson as the second Tar Heel to be named a finalist for the award this season in their respective sports.

The fifth-year senior from Williamson, Michigan was the No. 1 seed in this year’s NCAA Singles Tournament and earned her first career ACC Player of the Year award after leading UNC to a 30-0 record before ultimately falling to Pepperdine in the NCAA Team Tournament semifinals.

She ends her career with as a seven-time ITA All-American with a 149-35 record in singles competition, good enough for second behind Hayley Carter on UNC’s all-time wins list.

Other finalists for this year’s Honda Sport Award in women’s tennis include: Emma Navarro (Virginia), Estela Perez-Somarriba (Miami) and Katarina Jokic (Georgia).

Navarro — a freshman — defeated Daavettila in the NCAA semifinals and went on to win the national championship in her first year as a collegiate player.

The tennis finalists were chosen by a combination of NCAA Championship finishes and national tennis rankings. A winner will be chosen later this week after a vote by administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools.

Once winners from each of the 12 women’s sports have been decided, one of those 12 finalists will be selected as the winner of the Honda Cup — recognizing the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year — on June 28.

Photo via UNC Athletics

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