May 25, 2000

Release: Upon Receipt

FURMAN'S BROWNLEE CLAIMS SOCON'S TOP HONOR

MYRTLE BEACH, SC -- Furman sophomore Kaye Brownlee was honored Wednesday as the recipient of the Southern Conference female Athlete-of-the-Year at the Southern Conference Honors Banquet at the Myrtle Beach Martinique Hotel.

Brownlee becomes the third Furman athlete to win the SoCon female Athlete-of-the-Year award as she joins Caroline Peek (golf '94) and Heather VandeBrake (cross country/track '96) as recipients of the award. The Southern Conference athlete-of-the-year award is comprised of athletic achievement, civic achievement, and academic achievement.

Brownlee, a rising junior midfielder, is already Furman's all-time leader in assists, and is second in career points and third in goals. In 1999, she became the first Furman women's soccer player to earn All-America honors, being named a consensus All-American by three different organizations, including first team honors by the NSCAA. Brownlee was among the national leaders in assists with 17 to go along with her 13 goals last fall.

Brownlee carries a 3.63 GPA as an environmental science major. She was elected to the CoSIDA All-District at-large team and was a member of the SoCon Honor Roll in 1999. She has been a member of the dean's list every semester since she arrived at Furman. In the community, Brownlee is active as a tutor at Lakeview Middle School for science and Berea High School for English. She has also helped lead soccer clinics with the St. Giles Soccer Club.

The award is another in a long line of honors for this rising junior. Last week, she was honored as Furman's Edna Hartness Female Athlete-of-the-Year.

Furman finished the season 20-3, setting school and Southern Conference records for overall wins. The Lady Paladins also set records for goals, assists, points, conference wins, wins at home, and wins on the road. The Lady Paladins, the Southern Conference regular season and tournament champions, earned their first NCAA Tournament bid in history.

Below are Brownlee's honors to date:

General Athletic Honors

2000: Southern Conference Female Athlete-of-the-Year

Furman University Edna Hartness Female Athlete-of-the-Year

Academic Honors:

2000: GTE Academic All-District III Fall/Winter At-Large Second Team

Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll

1999: Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll

Soccer Honors:

1999: NSCAA/adidas First Team All-America

Soccer Buzz Second Team All-America

College Soccer Online Third Team All-America

NSCAA/adidas First Team All-Southeast Region

Soccer Buzz First Team All-Southeast Region

First Team All-Southern Conference

Southern Conference Tournament MVP

1998: NSCAA/adidas Third Team All-Southeast Region

Soccer Buzz Second Team All-Southeast Region

Soccer Buzz Freshman All-America First Team

Soccer Buzz Southeast Region All-Freshman Team

First Team All-Southern Conference

Southern Conference Freshman-of-the-Year