Voting for the MA Sorensen Award has begun. The award acknowledges the top women’s college player per school year and is decided in concert with the men’s Rudy Scholtz Award. Previous winners include Hope Rogers (2016, Penn State), Ilona Maher (2017, Quinnipiac), McKenzie Hawkins (2018, Lindenwood) and Emily Henrich (2019, Dartmouth).
The 2019-2020 process began with a general fan poll and then the Sorensen Award Committee, of which The Rugby Breakdown is a member, narrowed the field for rounds of continued voting. The first round begins with 20 players from the NIRA, DI Elite and DI ranks, and the field ranges from capped Eagles to standouts who led their teams to unforgettable seasons:
SORENSEN NOMINEES
Sui A’au – Central WashingtonDestiny Arena – LindenwoodAlisa Baker – BYUCassidy Bargell – HarvardEmily Briggs – BYUCaring DeFreitas – LindenwoodAlex DiMarco – ArmyKaylee Eskeli – Air ForceGiovanna Ferguson-Lewis – Army
Denecia Fernandes – CalJessica Gentle – WyomingBrogan Mior – HarvardOlivia Ortiz – DavenportNika Paogofie Buyten – LindenwoodAriana Ramsey – DartmouthSpiff Sedrick – LifeSarah Skinner – NavySamantha Sullivan – ArmyJuah Toe – West ChesterAdrienne Yoder – Air Force
Votes funnel through two streams: fan (any individual can vote once) and team (each team via a single representative receives a vote). This round of voting will narrow the field to a set of finalists, and then one more poll will determine the winner, who will be flown to the Washington Athletic Center for the award ceremony.
This process is run by Alex Goff at Goff Rugby Report.