Feb. 20, 2013

BERKELEY -

From taking Friends of Jaclyn Foundation adoptee Bebe Wiggs on movie playdates to hosting a pitching clinic for young girls, senior Jolene Henderson is as passionate about the community as she is about softball. For her strong leadership and character on and off the diamond, Henderson is one of the 30 softball student-athletes selected as a candidate for the 2013 Senior CLASS Award, the Senior CLASS Award Collegiate Foundation announced Wednesday.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

The candidate class will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2013 NCAA Women's College World Series® in Oklahoma City May 30 through June 5.

Henderson's Four Cs:

Classroom
Henderson is an American Studies major at Cal, and received a Pac-12 All-Academic Team Honorable Mention honor in 2012. She has several aspirations, including playing at the professional level, becoming a coach and starting her own business. Her ideal job would be a situation where she could help young people build confidence through sports, because she believes her athletic career has given her a better stage to help people.

Character
Coaches describe Henderson as a workhorse who is self-motivated and driven, passionate and caring about her teammates, as well as charismatic and giving. As a young sophomore, she was quick to step into the circle in 2011 after Cal's starting pitcher Valerie Arioto broke her ankle before the season. This 2013 season is the first time in Cal's history that the softball team has team captains, and Henderson is one of them.

Henderson has also been a member of the Bear Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, which meets once every two weeks to provide a voice for student-athletes in athletic administration.

Community
Henderson is especially passionate about working with children and the elderly, and has been involved with numerous community service activities since she was in high school, when she hosted a free pitching clinic for young girls.

One community service project she is extremely passionate about is the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, which aims to "improve the quality of life for children with pediatric brain tumors and their families by pairing them with college and high school athletic teams." The Golden Bears adopted Bebe Wiggs, a local child with pediatric cancer, in 2010, and since then the team has hosted numerous pediatric cancer awareness activities for Bebe. The team even attended Bebe's birthday party and held a Christmas party for her. Bebe is especially close with Jolene, who was the first person outside of Bebe's immediate family who was allowed to take her anywhere on their own. Jolene took Bebe to the movies and continues to spend time with her outside of team activities with her. Even during the offseason, she calls and visits the Wiggs to check in on Bebe's progress.

Competition
Jolene is a major reason Cal was heralded so highly in the 2013 preseason. She has already found herself on the USA Softball Player of the Year Watch List, and was named to ESPN's Preseason All-American Softball team. The senior started turning heads as a sophomore in 2011 after Cal's starting pitcher Valerie Arioto broke her ankle on the first day of practice. She had a standout season, including pitching 18 shutouts, two no-hitters and a perfect game while striking out 333 batters and limiting them to a .189 batting average. She became Cal's all-time single-season wins leader with 40 wins in 2011. She was named an Easton First-Team All-American and the Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year.

Henderson had an equally, if not more successful, junior season, finishing with numerous accolades, including: NFCA First Team All-American, NFCA All-Pacific Region First Team, Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year, All-Pac-12 First Team, and Pitcher of the week 5 times throughout the 2012 season. She also earned Chevron Spring Fling Most Valuable Pitcher, and was a USA Softball Player of the Year Top-11 Finalist.

For more information on all the candidates, visit www.seniorCLASSaward.com

2013 Senior CLASS Award Softball Candidates

Emily Allard, Northwestern

Brooke Andresen, Loyola (Chicago)

Nikki Armagost, Pacific

Jennifer Barnett, Northern Illinois

B.B. Bates, UCLA

Kayla Braud, Alabama

Amy Buntin, Notre Dame

Allie Cashion, Appalachian State

Raven Chavanne, Tennessee

Kelly Coker, Rhode Island

Kara Dill, Kentucky

Kara Dornbos, Central Michigan

Rachele Fico, LSU

Olivia Galati, Hofstra

Mikkel Griffin, Southern Utah

Jolene Henderson, California

Kelsey Horton, Florida

Maggie Hull, Kansas

Shannon Jones, Siena

Courtney Liddle, Virginia Tech

Blaire Luna, Texas

Kelly Majam, Hawai'i

Jenna Marston, Missouri

Jennifer Ong, Yale

Jenna Rich, Stanford

Keilani Ricketts, Oklahoma

Emily Roesch, Boston

Jessica Shults, Oklahoma

Stephanie Thompson, Brown

Brianna Turang, Oklahoma