Lax honors For the second consecutive year, Kristen Kjellman of Northwestern was honored with the Tewaaraton Trophy, which goes to the top female collegiate lacrosse player in the nation. Kjellman, a senior, has been an integral part of the Wildcats three consecutive championships, and she predicted a bright future for the Wildcats without her. ???They are returning a lot of great leaders and they will fill the gaps where needed,??? Kjellman said after the championship contest on May 28. ???They are going to continue to be awesome.??? Matt Danowski of Duke won the trophy on the men???s side. Duke was the 2007 national runner-up, and Danowski called his recognition ???humbling.??? ???This honor could not have been possible without the hard work and dedication put forth by the entire Duke lacrosse team,??? the co-captain said. Danowski is just the fourth player in NCAA history to put up 40 or more goals and 50 or more assists in a single season.

More awards Tennessee???s Monica Abbott was named USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year earlier this week. Abbott broke the NCAA career record for strikeouts this season, and had struck out 649 batters before the start of the Women???s College World Series May 31. Meanwhile Collegiate Baseball bestowed its player of the year award on two student-athletes ??? Vanderbilt left-handed pitcher David Price and Florida State second baseman Tony Thomas. Both Price and Thomas were the player of the year in their respective conferences (Southeastern and Atlantic Coast) as well.

So long, Billy Donovan Fresh off the heels of back-to-back Division I men???s basketball championships at the University of Florida, Billy Donovan accepted the head coaching position with the Orlando Magic. Kentucky coveted Donovan for its open job earlier this year, later filled by Billy Gillispie. But Donovan was steadfast and vocal in proclaiming his love for Florida. AD Jeremy Foley reports ???no hard feelings??? in the Gators camp, and President J. Bernard Machen said ???we???ll always love Billy Donovan.??? That???s a lot of love coming out of Gainesville. After all, in Orlando, Donovan will be just more than 100 miles away from his old stomping grounds. We???ll be watching to see how another college coach makes the transition to the NBA.