Kenedy Schoonveld, a fifth-year senior guard from Hope College, was named the DIII Honda Athlete of the Year finalist for basketball as announced on Monday by Executive Director Chris Voelz of The Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA) presented by Honda.
The social work major is now designated one of 11 finalists for the prestigious DIII Honda Athlete of the Year. This will be voted on at the end of the academic year by national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member schools as part of THE CWSA program, now in its 46th year.
"I'm so honored and grateful to be a finalist for the DIII Honda Award," said Schoonveld. "I would not be in this position without my parents, coaches and teammates, and I want to thank them for everything they've done for me during my time at Hope. I also want to congratulate all of the other finalists on all of their accomplishments in their respective sports."
Schoonveld was most recently named the 2022 WBCA and D3Hoops DIII Player of the Year and also earned the Jostens Trophy, given to the most outstanding women's and men's Division III basketball players of the year. A three-time WBCA All-American and a five-time MIAA All-Conference first-team selection, she also earned MIAA MVP honors three straight seasons.
Hailing from Zeeland, Michigan, the guard averaged 11.1 points per game, 3.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Hope finished with a 32-1 overall record and won 77 of 78 games over the past three seasons. The Flying Dutch were MIAA co-champions and won the league tournament this season.
For her career, Schoonveld started all 138 games — a team record — and helped Hope post a 130-8 record during that time.
"Kenedy had a tremendous senior year, but had an even more tremendous NCAA Tournament run," head coach Brian Morehouse said. "When Savannah Freenstra went down with an injury, Kenedy and Sydney (Muller) played more and more with the "Chaos Crew", Kenedy got more minutes, points, and rebounds,and I thought led people to see more about her. The unsung part is that she was our best wing defender. She always guarded the other team's best offensive player."
All Honda Sports nominees from DIII and DII become a finalist for the prestigious 2022 Honda Athlete of the Year in their respective divisions, presented in a live telecast on CBS Sports Network on June 27, 2022, in downtown Los Angeles. The Honda Award finalists are recognized in 11 DIII and DII NCAA-sanctioned sports; cross country, basketball, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming & diving, tennis, volleyball, and track & field.
The CWSA, entering its 46th year, has honored the nation's top NCAA women athletes for their superior athletic skills, leadership, academic excellence and eagerness to participate in community service. Since commencing its partnership 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.
