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Photo by: John McGillen
Sara Hughes Named Semifinalist for AAU James E. Sullivan Award
March 15, 2018 | Women's Beach Volleyball, Features
The four-time USC beach volleyball All-American is among a field of 28 elite amateur athletes selected for consideration
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Four-time USC beach volleyball All-American Sara Hughes (Costa Mesa, Calif.) was named one of 28 semifinalists for the Amateur Athletic Union's (AAU) 88th James E. Sullivan Award on Wednesday, March 14. Semifinalists will be narrowed to a group of finalists based on a public vote open from March 14-20.
This year's group of semifinalists includes:
Annika Albrecht, women's volleyball
Rhamat Alhassan, women's volleyball
Marvin Bagley III, men's basketball
Saquon Barkley, football
Joel Berry II, men's basketball
Christian Coleman, track and field
Caleb Dressel, swimming
Erin Finn, track and field
Sara Hughes, beach volleyball
Kelly Hunter, women's volleyball
Megan Johnson, fitness and bodybuilding
Micah Kiser, football
Bryce Love, football
Helen Maroulis, wrestling
Baker Mayfield, football
Chris Mazdzer, luge
Elana Meyers Taylor, bobsled
Angela Peavy, para-equestrian
Kathryn Plummer, women's volleyball
Maia and Alex Shibutani, figure skating
John Shuster, curling
Carli Snyder, women's volleyball
Kyle Snyder, wrestling
Maggie Steffens, water polo
Gabby Williams, women's basketball
A'ja Wilson, women's basketball
Trae Young, men's basketball
Katie Zafares, triathlon
"We are so excited about this year's group of AAU James E. Sullivan Award semifinalists," said Melissa Willis, AAU Sullivan Award National Chair. "This is a unique opportunity for us to recognize amateur athletes across a number of different sports – from para-equestrian and curling to men's basketball and women's volleyball."
The AAU Sullivan Award has been presented annually since 1930 to the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States. Representatives from the AAU created the Sullivan Award with the intent to recognize contributions and achievements from amateur athletes across the country.
World renowned golfer Robert "Bobby" Jones received the inaugural award in 1930 and swimmer Anne Curtis became the first female to accept the award in 1944. Other notable athletes to win the award include famed Olympians Mark Spitz (1971), Carl Lewis (1981), Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1986), Michael Phelps (2003) and Shawn Johnson (2008). Former UCLA basketball star Bill Walton (1973), University of Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning (1997) and Ohio State Buckeyes running back Ezekiel Elliott (2014) have also earned the prestigious honor.
"As they do every year, this group of semifinalists embodies everything we aim to celebrate with the AAU James E. Sullivan Award," said Dr. Roger J. Goudy, President/CEO of the AAU. "These athletes are exceptional athletes – some of the top performers in their particular sports – but they are also extraordinary people who display leadership, citizenship, character and sportsmanship both on and off the field."
Voting for the award is open to the public at www.aausullivan.org. The semifinalist round opened at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, March 14 and closes at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, March 20. Finalists will be named on Wednesday, March 21 and the AAU James E. Sullivan Award presentation will be held at the prestigious New York Athletic Club on Tuesday, April 17.
USC has had four previous Sullivan Award winners. They are diver Sammy Lee (1953), discus thrower Parry O'Brien (1959), and swimmers John Naber (1977) and Janet Evans (1989).
Hughes helped lead the Women of Troy to three consecutive national championships (2015 AVCA, 2016-17 NCAA) and won three pairs national titles (two with Kelly Claes and one with Kirby Burnham). She was at two-time Pac-12 pairs champion with Claes and was also twice selected as part of the conference's Pair of the Year. Hughes was also named Volleyball Magazine's National Player of the Year and is the first-ever four-time All-American in the sport of collegiate beach volleyball. In the summer of 2017, she and Claes became the youngest pair ever to win a major AVP event as champions of the Chicago Open. The duo was chosen as the Los Angeles Council's Sportswomen of the Year and Hughes herself was named the 2017 FIVB Rookie of the Year.
No. 3-ranked USC is in Hawai'i this weekend for the 2018 Outrigger Resorts Hawaii Invitational. University of Hawai'i, Manoa, will host the tournament on Queen's Beach in Honolulu. The Trojans face No. 12 Grand Canyon, No. 5-ranked host Hawai'i twice, and Nebraska twice, in duals on Saturday and Sunday (March 17-18).
For more information on the three-time national champion USC beach volleyball team and a complete schedule, please visit USCTrojans.com and follow @USCBeach on Facebook, Twitter, Periscope, Instagram, and Snapchat.
This year's group of semifinalists includes:
Annika Albrecht, women's volleyball
Rhamat Alhassan, women's volleyball
Marvin Bagley III, men's basketball
Saquon Barkley, football
Joel Berry II, men's basketball
Christian Coleman, track and field
Caleb Dressel, swimming
Erin Finn, track and field
Sara Hughes, beach volleyball
Kelly Hunter, women's volleyball
Megan Johnson, fitness and bodybuilding
Micah Kiser, football
Bryce Love, football
Helen Maroulis, wrestling
Baker Mayfield, football
Chris Mazdzer, luge
Elana Meyers Taylor, bobsled
Angela Peavy, para-equestrian
Kathryn Plummer, women's volleyball
Maia and Alex Shibutani, figure skating
John Shuster, curling
Carli Snyder, women's volleyball
Kyle Snyder, wrestling
Maggie Steffens, water polo
Gabby Williams, women's basketball
A'ja Wilson, women's basketball
Trae Young, men's basketball
Katie Zafares, triathlon
"We are so excited about this year's group of AAU James E. Sullivan Award semifinalists," said Melissa Willis, AAU Sullivan Award National Chair. "This is a unique opportunity for us to recognize amateur athletes across a number of different sports – from para-equestrian and curling to men's basketball and women's volleyball."
The AAU Sullivan Award has been presented annually since 1930 to the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States. Representatives from the AAU created the Sullivan Award with the intent to recognize contributions and achievements from amateur athletes across the country.
World renowned golfer Robert "Bobby" Jones received the inaugural award in 1930 and swimmer Anne Curtis became the first female to accept the award in 1944. Other notable athletes to win the award include famed Olympians Mark Spitz (1971), Carl Lewis (1981), Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1986), Michael Phelps (2003) and Shawn Johnson (2008). Former UCLA basketball star Bill Walton (1973), University of Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning (1997) and Ohio State Buckeyes running back Ezekiel Elliott (2014) have also earned the prestigious honor.
"As they do every year, this group of semifinalists embodies everything we aim to celebrate with the AAU James E. Sullivan Award," said Dr. Roger J. Goudy, President/CEO of the AAU. "These athletes are exceptional athletes – some of the top performers in their particular sports – but they are also extraordinary people who display leadership, citizenship, character and sportsmanship both on and off the field."
Voting for the award is open to the public at www.aausullivan.org. The semifinalist round opened at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, March 14 and closes at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, March 20. Finalists will be named on Wednesday, March 21 and the AAU James E. Sullivan Award presentation will be held at the prestigious New York Athletic Club on Tuesday, April 17.
USC has had four previous Sullivan Award winners. They are diver Sammy Lee (1953), discus thrower Parry O'Brien (1959), and swimmers John Naber (1977) and Janet Evans (1989).
Hughes helped lead the Women of Troy to three consecutive national championships (2015 AVCA, 2016-17 NCAA) and won three pairs national titles (two with Kelly Claes and one with Kirby Burnham). She was at two-time Pac-12 pairs champion with Claes and was also twice selected as part of the conference's Pair of the Year. Hughes was also named Volleyball Magazine's National Player of the Year and is the first-ever four-time All-American in the sport of collegiate beach volleyball. In the summer of 2017, she and Claes became the youngest pair ever to win a major AVP event as champions of the Chicago Open. The duo was chosen as the Los Angeles Council's Sportswomen of the Year and Hughes herself was named the 2017 FIVB Rookie of the Year.
No. 3-ranked USC is in Hawai'i this weekend for the 2018 Outrigger Resorts Hawaii Invitational. University of Hawai'i, Manoa, will host the tournament on Queen's Beach in Honolulu. The Trojans face No. 12 Grand Canyon, No. 5-ranked host Hawai'i twice, and Nebraska twice, in duals on Saturday and Sunday (March 17-18).
For more information on the three-time national champion USC beach volleyball team and a complete schedule, please visit USCTrojans.com and follow @USCBeach on Facebook, Twitter, Periscope, Instagram, and Snapchat.
Monday, May 04
Saturday, May 03
Friday, May 02
Monday, April 14
