Sheila Reid, a senior at Villanova University, has won the 2011 Honda Sports Award in track and field, designating her as the nation’s top collegiate female athlete in that sport. The honor was based on the results of national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member schools as part of The Collegiate Women Sports Awards program, now in its 35th year. Reid, who also won this year’s Honda Sports Award for cross country, recently capped a great year when she was crowned the NCAA Outdoor Champion in the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter races – the first woman in history to win both events in the same year.

The Honda Sports Award is given annually to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports, along with automatic eligibility to become a “Top Three” finalist for Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year. Reid was voted over three other nominees for the 2011 award: Jessica Beard, a senior at Texas A&M University, Kimberlyn Duncan, a sophomore at the Louisiana State University and Kim Williams, a senior at Florida State University. The nominees in track and field were selected by the Women’s Track and Field Coaches Association.

Noted Reid, “It is very humbling to be named the Honda Sports Award winner for track & field, considering the outstanding nominees that were up for the award. I have also spoken often this year about the incredible women who have been stars on the track at Villanova in the past. For me to win two Honda Sports Awards this year maybe means that my name can now be etched alongside all of these great women that came before me.”

Reid is a native of Newmarket, Ontario. In addition to her NCAA championships this year in both the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter, she was the Indoor National Champion in the distance medley. She was selected All-American in the 3,000-meter. She finished her season as the Big East Indoor champion in the 1,000-meter, 4x800-meter relay, distance medley relay and outdoor titlist in the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter. The indoor and outdoor Mid-Atlantic Region Athlete of the Year is a12-time Big East Champion, a nine-time All-American selection and NCAA individual cross country titlist.

Like many Honda Sports Award winners, Reid is an academic standout in addition to her excellence in athletics. The four-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star was selected to the Academic All-District first team and holds a GPA of 3.408 as a major in English.