Hailey Diestlekamp, a junior forward from Drury University, was named the DII Honda Athlete of the Year finalist for women’s basketball as announced today by Executive Director Chris Voelz of THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) presented by Honda.

Diestlekamp is now designated one of 11 finalists for the prestigious DII Honda Athlete of the Year. This will be voted on at the end of the academic year by national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member schools as part of THE CWSA program, now in its 43rd year.

“This is an awesome opportunity and I am completely blessed,” Diestlekamp said. “I would like to thank my family, teammates, coaches, boosters, fans and everyone else who has supported me along this incredible journey. I would not be where I am today without any of them.”

Most recently, Diestlekamp was named the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) DII Player of the Year and WBCA DII First-Team All-American. A unanimous selection as a First Team All-GLVC performer, she was also named the Most Valuable Player of the Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament and the MVP of the NCAA-II Midwest Regional tournament.

Hailing from Owensville, Mo., the junior set Drury's all-time rebounding record and has 865 career boards. She also broke Drury's single-season scoring record with 758 points on the year. She led her team to a 35-1 record falling for the first time on the season in the NCAA DII Championship semifinals.  

She has put up 14 double-doubles this season and the only triple-double in program history with a 21-point, 10-rebound, and 10-steal performance against Indianapolis (Jan. 10). She earned GLVC Player of the Week honors four times during the year and was the NCAA DII Player of the Week during the week of Jan. 7-13.

“I’m thrilled for Hailey to be recognized and nominated for the most prestigious award in NCAA-II women’s sports”, said head coach Molly Miller. “It is a testament of her hard work and dedication to the sport. She is a great player but also a great person, and I feel fortunate to have the opportunity to coach her, watch her grow, and to be a part of her life. 

“I also would like to thank the WBCA for their recognition of Hailey and to The Collegiate Women Sports Awards and Honda for their promotion of women’s athletics through the Honda Awards.”

All Honda Sports nominees from DII and DIII become a finalist for the prestigious 2019 Honda Athlete of the Year in their respective divisions, presented in a live telecast on CBS Sports on June 24, 2019, in downtown Los Angeles. The Honda Sports nominees are recognized in 11 DII and DIII NCAA-sanctioned sports; cross country, basketball, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, volleyball, and track & field.

THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards has honored the nation’s top NCAA women athletes for 43 years, recognizing superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service.   Since commencing its sponsorship in 1986, Honda has provided more than $3.1 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women’s athletics programs at the institutions.

About Honda

Honda seeks to be a company that society wants to exist, creating products and technologies that improve the lives of people while minimizing the environmental impacts of its products and business operations to ensure a sustainable future.

Honda also is committed to making positive contributions to the communities where it does business, conducting socially responsible business practices and promoting diversity in its workforce. From Honda’s involvement in STEM education and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) to its support of pediatric brain tumor research and volunteer efforts by Honda associates, including environmental clean-up activities, Honda believes in giving back to the communities where its associates live and work.