Matson Picked For Honda Award

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – North Carolina sophomore Erin Matson has been named the Honda Sport Award winner for Field Hockey, as announced Monday by Chris Voelz, Executive Director of the Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA).

Matson is the fifth Tar Heel to earn the Honda Award for field hockey, on the sixth occasion. Previous UNC winners are Leslie Lyness (1989), Cindy Werley (1996, 1997), Rachel Dawson (2007) and Ashley Hoffman (2018).

"Winning the Honda Sport Award is such an honor, and I'm extremely grateful to have even been nominated," said Matson, who in 2019 helped lead the Tar Heels to a second-straight NCAA Championship. "The award means so much to me because it's another opportunity for me to represent my family, my University, my team, and all of the people that love the sport just as much as I do. I'm so fortunate to have an outstanding circle of people supporting me, and I could not have won this award without them."

The Honda Sport Award has been presented annually by the CWSA for the past 44 years to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports and signifies "the best of the best in collegiate athletics". With this honor, Matson becomes a finalist for the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and the prestigious Class of 2020 Honda Cup which will be presented on a live telecast on CBS Sports Network on Monday, June 22, 2020, in Los Angeles.

An advertising and public relations major from Chadds Ford, Pa., Matson was chosen by a vote of administrators from over 1,000 NCAA member schools. Other finalists were Svea Boker (UConn), Clara Roth (Princeton) and Mercedes Pastor (Louisville).

The National Field Hockey Coaches Association's National Player of the Year Award and Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Matson led the nation in points and goals per game in 2019. She finished her sophomore season with 33 goals, 15 assists, and 81 points, helping the Tar Heels to their second-consecutive undefeated season. The NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player, she earned All-America first-team honors for the second year in a row.

So far in her career, Matson has been part of two NCAA Championships, two ACC regular-season championships, and two ACC Tournament championships and has yet to lose a game as a Tar Heel.

This is the second straight year a field hockey player from North Carolina was named a Honda Award finalist after Hoffman earned the honor last season.

"I could not be prouder of Erin Matson for this outstanding achievement," said UNC coach Karen Shelton, who remains the only three-time Honda Award winner for field hockey. "She's one of the most mature and complete players that I have had the privilege of coaching. She has an uncanny ability to see the space, whether it's a passing lane or the corner of the goal, and she initiates attack by aggressive pressing and a fantastic work ethic."

"She's so deserving of the Honda Sport Award, and in winning it she joins an impressive list of Tar Heel recipients who have earned this amazing distinction."

Honda Sport Award winners will be presented with the honor during on-campus presentations throughout the year.

The CWSA, in its 44th year, honors the nation's top NCAA women athletes 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 $3.4 million in institutional grants to the universities of the award winners and nominees to support women's athletics programs at the institutions.

Players Mentioned

Ashley Hoffman

Erin Matson

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