Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 3/28/09
Ridley graduate Michael Colleluori, a senior middie at Hofstra, is one of 10 finalists for the 2009 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in the Men’s Lacrosse division.
Colleluori has played a significant role in helping build the HEADstrong Foundation into a household name in the lacrosse world. The HEADstrong Foundation has raised over $200,000 in the fight against blood cancer in the name of Colleluori’s older brother, Nick “Head” Colleluori, who passed away in 2006 due to non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
The Lowe’s CLASS award is given to the senior who best exhibits contributions both on and off the field. These student-athletes have been selected as finalists for the Nationwide balloting, which begins immediately to determine the third annual winner, which will receive the award during the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships in Foxboro, Mass.
Colleluori leads Hofstra in scoring with 8 goals and 10 assists in six games The Pride are 5-1 and ranked
The finalists were chosen from a list of 30 candidates based on qualities that define a complete student-athlete. These four primary areas of criteria include: classroom, community, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award has developed into the nation’s premier tribute to college seniors. The award, which launched in 2001 with college basketball, is now in its third year for men’s lacrosse. Cornell goaltender Matt McMonagle (Episcopal Academy) won the inaugural lacrosse division award in 2007 and Syracuse attack Mike Leveille was the 2008 recipient.
The finalists for 2009 are:
Michael Colleluori, Hofstra University
Matt Abbott, Syracuse University
Jordan Burke, Brown University
Brandon Corp, Colgate University
Joel Dalgarno, Ohio State University
Danny Glading, University of Virginia
Ryan Hoff, Notre Dame University
Max Seibald, Cornell University
Andy Tormey, U.S. Naval Academy
Grant Zimmerman, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
These 10 names will be placed on the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award men’s lacrosse ballot for a nationwide vote beginning March 26 and concluding May 7. Fan balloting, available on the award’s official web site http://www.seniorclassaward.com, will be combined with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award.
“These ten student-athletes are to be commended for their all-around outstanding achievements as a collegian,” said Bob Gfeller, Lowe’s senior vice president of marketing. “Lowe’s is proud of its affiliation with the NCAA and college athletics, and we are pleased to help honor these individuals who have displayed a commitment to character, community and the classroom in addition to their competition on the lacrosse field.”
The 2009 award winner will be announced and presented with the prestigious Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award trophy during festivities surrounding the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships, scheduled May 23-25. The Lowe’s All-Senior All-America Team, based on final results of the balloting, will also be recognized.
The idea of an award to salute collegiate seniors was conceived by sportscaster Dick Enberg, who continues to serve as Honorary Chairman. It was inspired by the trend of college basketball players leaving college early to turn professional. The Senior CLASS Award was formed to honor senior student-athletes who fulfill their entire collegiate athletic eligibility, earn a college degree and give back to their community.
Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, expanded the award in 2007 to include six other NCAA sports: men’s ice hockey, men’s lacrosse, baseball, softball, men’s soccer and women’s soccer. Football (Bowl Subdivision) was added in 2008 to bring the total sports affiliated with the award to nine.
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