Nogueira wins a Honda

UNC junior Casey Nogueira of Raleigh has been named the winner of this years Honda Sports Award for soccer, symbolic of being the nation's top collegiate female soccer player. The honor was based on the results of national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member programs. Nogueira's victory automatically nominates her for the Honda's Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year.

The Honda award is given annually to the top women athletes in 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. Nogueira's win marks the 10th time that a UNC soccer player has won a Honda. Past winners from the school include soccer great Mia Hamm, who won it two years in a row.

Nogueira, a forward from Raleigh Broughton, scored two second-half goals to lead the Tar Heels to an upset win over No. 1 Notre Dame in this year's NCAA Championship game, earning her NCAA Tournament offensive MVP honors. She led the nation last season with 58 points and 25 goals, seven of them game winners.

FOOTBALL

Moss a finalist

Jacksonville Northside High School defensive lineman Donte Moss, a UNC signee, is one of four finalists for the EAS Speed and Strength Award. The award is given to the high school football player whom judges deem the nation's fastest, strongest and most dedicated player in the mode of NFL great Walter Payton.

The winner will be announced on Jan. 2 at the U.S. Army All-American awards dinner in San Antonio, Texas. Other finalists include running back Chris Michael of West Brook High School in Beaumont, Texas; tight end Ronnie Wingo of University High School in St. Louis; and defensive back Dre Kirkpatrick of Gadsden (Ala.) City High School.

Sold out in Charlotte

The 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl is officially a sellout, it was proudly announced last week by bowl officials in Charlotte. Over 73,000 tickets have been sold for this year's game between the University of North Carolina and the West Virginia University Mountaineers.

The 2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl will take place on Saturday, Dec. 27, at Bank of America Stadium, with a 1 p.m. kickoff. It is televised nationally on ESPN.

WRESTLING

Tigers host Classic

Chapel Hill will soon be visited by 37 top wrestling teams who will take part in the Tiger Holiday Classic at Chapel Hill High School. The Classic is set for Monday and Tuesday, with bouts starting at 8:30 a.m. each day. Top teams from the Carolinas, Virginia, Georgia and Maryland will compete.

Three-time state champion Corey Mock (currently 13-0 at 135 pounds) leads the list of Tigers heading into the tournament with winning records and top-15 rankings. They include teammates: Ryan Mumper (10-5 at 103); Devin Solow (10-2 at 112); Peter Dreher (11-5 and ranked No. 9 in North Carolina at 119); Josh Craig (12-2 at 125); Jonathan Lee (12-3 at 14); Roscoe Burnette (5-3 and rated No. 9 in the state at 145); Andrew Hertzberg (10-3 at 160 (12th); and Marvin Binilla (7-6 at 189). Aaron Squires at 152 and Joseph Dallke at 215 are both 7-7.

Stabile leads Heels

North Carolina sophomore Nick Stabile was the runner-up at 149 pounds to lead a group of four Tar Heels to top-four finishes in the Reno Tournament of Champions Thursday at the Reno (Nev.) Convention Center. In addition to Stabile's efforts, sophomore Thomas Scotton was third at 157, senior Keegan Mueller took third at 165 and sophomore Mike Rappo placed fourth at 133. Senior Vincent Ramirez was fifth at 141, and junior Dennis Drury placed sixth at 197 to give Carolina six place-winners on the day.

Stabile is now 12-5 on the season after registering a 4-1 record Thursday. All five of Stabile's losses this season have come to top-14 ranked opponents.

BASKETBALL

UNC-Duke marathon set

The annual Duke Carolina Student Basketball Marathon will be held Jan. 17-18, played at Duke's Wilson Gym for the second straight year. The 26-hour game between students raises money for a program called Bounceback Kids, which financially helps young patients at Duke Medical Center and UNC Hospitals.

Live bands and other entertainment, including TV coverage of the Duke-UNC varsity basketball games, will accompany the game.

For more information about the marathon, see www.basketballmarathon.com

McCants makes the list

UNC's Rashanda McCants is on the "watch list" for the 2009 Naismith Trophy from the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The watch list announced last week by the club's Board of Selectors is based its criteria on player performances from the previous year and expectations for the 2008-09 college basketball season. The watch list does not include incoming freshmen, although those student-athletes will be considered in the first vote in February, 2009. The Naismith Trophy will be awarded at the 2009 NCAA Women's Final Four in St. Louis.

Tar Heels at beach

North Carolina made its annual trip to Myrtle Beach this weekend. The Tar Heels were 11-0 after hitting its high-water mark offensively in a 105-49 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Dec. 15. They were scheduled to play Illinois (4-6) at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center on Saturday, then break for the Christmas holiday.

Illinois is coming off a 63-61 win at Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Dec. 10. Carolina is ranked No. 2 in both the AP poll and the coaches' poll. Illinois is unranked.

See www.newsobserver.com or today's edition of the News & Observer for results of Saturday's game.

BRIEFLY ...

Appalachian State quarterback Armanti Edwards won the Walter Payton Award on Thursday night as Football Championship Subdivision's top player. He rushed for 941 yards and 11 touchdowns, and passed for 2,902 yards and 30 touchdowns for the Mountaineers this season. ... College football fans still have a day or two to visit www.CoachoftheYear.com and cast their vote for the 2008 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award. On the site fans can review bios and testimonials supporting each of the 25 finalists before they make their selection. The finalists include Mack Brown of Texas in the BCS division and Jerry Moore of Appalachian State in the 1-AA division. ... Speaking of App State, which won three straight FCS championships before bowing out early in this year's playoffs, WCHL's Jeff Hamlin, an ASU alum, recently blogged that he "can't get over how odd it feels to be home, and not in Chattanooga, on the last Friday before Christmas."