Sheila Reid Named the Outstanding Amateur Athlete at Philadelphia Sportswriters Banquet
Villanova senior was this year's cross country individual national champion
The latest honor for Villanova senior Sheila Reid is being named the Outstanding Amateur Athlete at the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association dinner on Monday night in Cherry Hill, N.J.
Jan. 31, 2011
CHERRY HILL, N.J. - At the 107th annual Philadelphia Sports Writers Association dinner tonight at the Crowne Plaza in Cherry Hill, N.J., Villanova senior track and cross country star Sheila Reid was honored as the association's Outstanding Amateur Athlete in recognition of her steadily growing list of career accolades. Reid is a six-time All-American who most recently won the 2010 cross country individual national championship while leading the Wildcats to their second consecutive team title. Villanova head coach Gina Procaccio also received a Special Achievement Award for the success of the Wildcats in both cross country and track over the past year.
Reid joins a memorable list of previous winners of the award which includes several Villanovans, notably Vicki Huber and Brian Westbrook among that group. This honor is the latest to be bestowed upon Reid, who is this year's winner of the Honda Award for cross country and was recently selected as the sports All-Area Performer of the Year by the Philadelphia Inquirer for her efforts both in competition and as an outstanding student-athlete.
At the NCAA Cross Country Championships this past fall, Reid won her first individual national championship and the Wildcats brought home their record ninth team trophy to finish off a season in which the team was the nation's unanimous top team from start to finish. Reid won four of the five races she entered during the year and has now been the individual winner eight times in her last 10 starts since the beginning of the 2009 campaign. Reid has been an All-American in cross country in each of the past two seasons.
Her efforts on the track have been just as impressive. During the 2010 indoor campaign, Reid earned All-America honors for a third place individual finish in the 3000 meters as well as for being a part of the Wildcats distance medley relay squad which placed fourth in the nation. This season, Reid is coming off a terrific performance in the 3000 meters this past weekend at the New York Armory. Her personal best time of 8:56.92 is the fastest in the nation this season by nearly five seconds and is more than four seconds faster than her time from last year's indoor national championships meet. Reid garnered her first outdoor track All-America honor last year as well by placing fourth in the 1500 meters.
In addition to her incredible success in competition, Reid epitomizes what it means to be a student-athlete. She is a three-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star and during the fall 2010 semester was one of 11 student-athletes at Villanova to register a perfect 4.0 GPA. The combination of Reid's success as an athlete and a student was a consideration for both the Honda Award and the Philadelphia Inquirer award.
For the second straight year, Procaccio accepted a Special Achievement Award recognizing the success of the Villanova women's cross country and track teams. The cross country squad has won the last two national championships by convincing margins and the team's nine titles all-time are four more than any other program has won. Procaccio has been chosen as the National Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association in each of the past two seasons. In addition to consecutive national championships, the Wildcats have won the last two NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional titles and three straight BIG EAST championships.
Villanova also had a great year on the track in 2010, winning the BIG EAST team championship indoors and crowning numerous All-Americans during both the indoor and outdoor seasons. At the indoor NCAA Championships, the Wildcats had two individual All-Americans plus an All-American performance in the distance medley relay. The team featured two more individual All-Americans during the outdoor season.
The Philadelphia Sports Writers Association was founded on May 12, 1904. The first of what would become an annual Awards Dinner was held on February 15, 1905.
Philadelphia Sports Writers Association Dinner
January 31, 2011
Crowne Plaza (Cherry Hill, N.J.)
Award winners included:
Outstanding Pro Athlete (Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies)
Living Legend (Bill Bergey, Philadelphia Eagles)
Native Son (Bobby Convey)
Good Guy Athlete (Elton Brand, Philadelphia 76ers)
Team of the Year (Philadelphia Flyers)
Outstanding Amateur Athlete (Sheila Reid, Villanova cross country/track)
Humanitarian Award (Shane Victorino, Philadelphia Phillies)
Special Achievement (Jack Childs, Drexel wrestling)
Special Achievement (Fran Dunphy, Temple men's basketball)
Special Achievement (Al Bagnoli, Penn football)
Special Achievement (Herb Magee, Philadelphia University basketball)
Special Achievement (Matt Hoffman, Rowan football)
Special Achievement (Gina Procaccio, Villanova cross country/track)
Frank Dolson Award - Penn Relays (Gabby Mayo, Texas A&M women's track)
Army-Navy MVP (Wyatt Middleton, Navy)
Other speakers included:
Charlie Manuel (Phillies manager)
Steve Addazio (Temple football coach)
Joe Conklin (sports comic)
Other dais guests:
Ruben Amaro (Phillies GM)
Elizabeth Donald (Penn women's rowing)
Rebecca Donald (Penn women's rowing)
Christina Mastropaolo (Drexel field hockey)
Jill Davis (La Salle women's lacrosse)
Sarah Simonetti (Philadelphia University cross country)
Nicole McCreight (Saint Joseph's field hockey)
Lavoy Allen (Temple men's basketball)
Past Winners of the Philadelphia Outstanding Amateur Athlete
2010 - Sheila Reid
2009 - Gabriela Marginean
2008 - Mike Washington
2007 - Matt Ryan
2006 - Steve Slaton
2005 - Adam Knoblauch
2004 - Jameer Nelson
2002 - Brett Gordon and Dan Klecko
2001 - Brian Westbrook
2000 - Brandon Slay
1999 - Chris Boden
1998 - Brian Westbrook
1997 - Brian Finneran
1996 - David Reid
1995 - Miles Macik
1994 - Villanova Women's Cross Country
1993 - Aaron McKie
1992 - Lisa Raymond
1991 - Dawn Staley
1990 - Jane Catanzaro
1989 - David Wharton
1988 - Vicki Huber
1987 - Gordie Lockbaum
1986 - Paul Palmer
1985 - Mike Ruth
1984 - Beth Anders
1983 - Jay Sigel
1982 - Jay Sigel
1981 - Carl Lewis
1980 - Don Paige
1979 - Don Paige
1978 - Michael Brooks
1977 - Jay Sigel
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