May 23, 2009
Freshman women's golf star Carlota Ciganda has been selected as one of four finalists for the prestigious Honda Sports Award, which is given to the top collegiate athlete in that sport. All winners of the Honda Sports Award will become candidates for the Honda-Broderick Cup, which is awarded annually to the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year. Ciganda joins Purdue's Maria Hernandez and USC's Jennifer Song and Lizette Salas as finalists.
Despite only coming to school in January, Ciganda has been a crucial part of the Sun Devils NCAA Championship season. She recorded a top 20 finish at every tournament in her first collegiate season, including two medalist honors. She was awarded with Duramed NGCA First-Team All-American honors for her successful freshman campaign. Ciganda finished the season with a 72.16 scoring average and was ranked first in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings heading into the NCAA Championships. She was also ranked second in the Golfstat Cup prior to the NCAA Championships.
At the 2009 Pac-10 Championships, Ciganda earned her first collegiate individual victory by winning a playoff against teammate Jennifer Osborn and USC's Jennifer Song. She followed that up by winning the NCAA West Regional with a career-low 10-under 206 (67-68-71). Ciganda also tied for second in her collegiate debut at the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge and tied for third at the Wildcat Invitational.
The Sun Devils last Honda Award winner was Grace Park in 1999. Senior Azahara Munoz was the most recent finalist as she was nominated last season.