Following the completion of the high school tennis season, Midway University and the KHSAA presented the Female Student-Athlete of the Year award to Abby Birk, a junior at Sacred Heart Academy. Throughout her high school career, she has won numerous tournament titles and was named to the Louisville Courier-Journal’s all-area second team in 2016.
Birk’s coach, Whitney Thompson, describes her as a leader, and cites her attitude, dedication and hard work as keys to her success.
In addition to her tennis career, Birk is a member of Sacred Heart’s varsity field hockey team.
Despite her busy schedule, she is an outstanding student who maintains a 4.0 grade point average and has earned recognition for her prowess in English and Spanish. Outside of school, Birk regularly volunteers at Field Elementary and Norton Children’s Hospital.
“In addition to her athletic accomplishments, Abby Birk stands out in the classroom and her community,” said Rusty Kennedy, Athletics Director at Midway University. “It’s a great honor for us to present this award to such a strong student and leader.”
About the Midway University/KHSAA Female Student Athlete of the Year Awards
Nomination Process:
School administrators and/or coaches can nominate any qualified female high school student-athlete. Players can be nominated and win in more than one sport and are eligible to be nominated and win in multiple years of competition.
Judging Criteria
A panel of judges selected by Midway University and the KHSAA will review all nominations and make the selection of each individual sport Female Student-Athlete of the Year. The nominations will be judged on 60 percent weighting of overall athletic achievement, 20 percent academic achievement and 20 percent community service/leadership. In the event of a tie, the judges will have the discretion to select the final winner. Individual winners in each sport will be eligible for the overall Athlete of the Year Award, which will presented in May 2018.
Nominees must have an overall GPA of 3.0 or higher to qualify and be academically eligible to play in the season in which they are/were nominated.