North Carolina State University Athletics
Berkoff Honored as Finalist for 2022 Honda Sport Award for Swimming & Diving
4/18/2022 2:58:00 PM | Swimming
RALEIGH – NC State women's swimmer and multi-time NCAA champion Katharine Berkoff has been named one of four finalists for the 2022 Honda Sport Award for Swimming & Diving.
Berkoff is joined by Kate Douglass (Virginia), Alex Walsh (Virginia) and Tarrin Gilliland (Indiana) on the list. The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) for the past 46 years to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. The winner of the swimming & diving sport award becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious 2022 Honda Cup, which will be presented on a telecast on CBS Sports Network this summer.
This marks the second season in a row that a member of the NC State women's swimming and diving team has been named a finalist for the award. Sophie Hansson was featured on the list for the 2021 award.
A native of Missoula, Mont., Berkoff repeated as the 100-yard backstroke national champion at the 2022 NCAA Championships. It marked the fourth NCAA title of her career, after also winning the event and both medley relays in 2021. Berkoff claimed gold in dominant fashion with a 48.74 winning time that marked the fastest in NCAA history. The American record-breaking swim was the first time any woman has broken the 49-second barrier and was the first American record in the history of NC State women's swimming. Berkoff now owns the NCAA, ACC, American and US Open records in the 100-yard backstroke.
On her career, Berkoff is also a 19-time All-American and a four-time ACC champion. Outside of the pool, Berkoff has been honored as an Academic All-ACC Team member each of the last two seasons and was a CSCAA Scholar All-American in 2020.
The swimming & diving finalists were selected by a panel of coaches and experts from the Collegiate Swimming & Diving Coaches Association (CSCAA). The Honda Sport award winner for swimming & diving will be announced later this week after voting by administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools. Each NCAA member institution has a vote.
The CWSA, celebrating its 46th anniversary year, has honored the nation's top NCAA women athletes for their superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its partnership in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3.4 million in institutional grants to the universities of award winners and nominees to support women's athletics programs.
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