Sinclair Claims Top College Award

Canadian international Christine Sinclair of the University of Portland and senior midfielder Danny O’Rourke of Indiana University are the winners of the 2004 Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy, presented to the top female and male players in NCAA Division I soccer. The winners were decided by a vote of current National Soccer Coaches Association of America members at the NCAA Division I level.

Sinclair (Burnaby, British Columbia) scored 22 goals, 11 assists and 10 game-winners during the 2004 season en route to winning college soccer’s top prize. She finished fourth nationally in total points and tied for third in goals. Sinclair was named West Coast Conference Player of the Year for the second time in her career and led the Pilots to the quarterfinals of the 2004 NCAA Tournament.

Sinclair is already established as one of Canada’s greatest soccer players ever. A member of the Canadian national team since 2000, she is the second highest goal-scorer in Canadian history. Sinclair played in all six games and tallied three goals at the 2003 Women’s World Cup, helping Canada to a fourth-place finish.

In just three seasons at Portland, Sinclair is already ranked among Portland’s career leaders in game-winners (1st), points (3rd), goals (3rd), shots (3rd) and assists (12th). In 2002, Sinclair scored both goals in the College Cup finals against Santa Clara in leading Portland to the national championship.

A life science major with a 3.68 cumulative grade-point average, she is the only Portland player in history to garner two CoSIDA Academic All-American selections. Sinclair becomes the 2nd women’s player from the University of Portland to earn college soccer’s top honor. Shannon MacMillan won the M.A.C. and the Hermann awards in 1995.

The other two women’s finalists for the 2004 Hermann Trophy were University of North Carolina sophomore forward Heather O’Reilly (East Brunswick, N.J.) and Penn State junior forward Tiffany Weimer (North Haven, Conn.).