Dec. 20, 2004

SOLANA BEACH, CALIF. - Sophomore forward Heather O'Reilly (East Brunswick, N.J.) has been named one of four finalists for the prestigious 2004 Honda Sports Soccer Award Monday, joining Leslie Osborn of Santa Clara, Christine Sinclair Portland and Tiffany Weimer of Penn State as nominees. The winner is expected to be named later this week after nationwide balloting concludes. Former UNC defender Catherine Reddick won the award in 2003.

The winner of the Honda Soccer Award will be entered in the pool of 2004-05 Honda Sports Award winners for consideration for the Honda-Broderick Cup annually awarded to the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year.

In addition to the honor of the selection, American Honda Motor Company, Inc., will donate $1,000 to the women's athletic fund at the University of North Carolina. If O'Reilly wins the award, the university will receive a grant of $5,000.

O'Reilly, gold medalist on the 2004 Olympic Team, finished the 2004 season with 37 points on 13 goals and 11 assists. She led the Tar Heels to a 20-1-2 record overall, the ACC regular season championship, a consensus No. 1 finish in all four national polls at the close of the regular season and the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.