June 6, 2003
DAVIS, Calif. -
Four outstanding Aggies have been named recipients of UC Davis' annual student-athlete awards and will be presented with those awards at the Cal Aggie Athletic Hall of Fame ceremonies on Saturday evening at Freeborn Hall.
All-America tennis player Greg Lee has been named winner of the Colby E. "Babe" Slater Award as the Aggies' top male athlete, national champion swimmer Yuka Kobayashi will receive the Dr. Hubert Heitman Award as top female athlete, and soccer standout Cynthia Rail and All-America swimmer Matt Davie will share the W.P. Lindley Award given for scholastic and athletic achievement, and leadership.
Lee, a senior from Piedmont majoring in computer science, completed one of the finest careers in team history by leading the Aggies to the championship match of this year's NCAA Division II West Regional. Playing in the No.1 singles position and facing each opponent's top player, Lee posted a 26-5 record in singles this season, at one point stringing together a 15-match winning streak. He was 24-7 in doubles with Paul Dilloway, earning All-America honors in both singles and doubles. Lee, the only American-born Division II player with a world ranking (No. 1,336), finished his career with 70 singles and 77 doubles wins, both marks second all-time at UC Davis.
Kobayashi, an undeclared freshman who attended high school in both Japan and the Bay Area, enjoyed the finest individual season in women's swimming history in 2002-03. She won a pair national championships, broke 11 individual event and relay school records, set an NCAA Division II record in the 200-yard butterfly (2:00.98) and captured three individual titles at the Pacific Collegiate Swimming Conference Championships. Kobayashi, who won the 100 backstroke and 200 butterfly at the NCAA Championships, became the first Aggie since Kristi Wheeler in 1987 to win two individual national championships in the same season. In all, Kobayashi earned five All-America honors, capping a tremendous first season with UC Davis.
Rail, a senior from Rohnert Park, carries a 3.81 GPA in clinical nutrition and will share the Lindley Award with Davie. Rail concluded her Aggie career as the most prolific goal scorer in school history, finishing with 43 goals, 20 assists and 108 total points, holding the No.1 position in all three categories by the end of her junior year. She earned first-team adidas/NSCAA All-West Region honors and first-team All-California Collegiate Athletic Association distinction three times, and twice has made the Verizon Academic All-District VIII first team. She has served as an officer for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has volunteered as a youth soccer coach. Rail was also named recipient of a prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
Davie, a senior civil engineering major from El Dorado Hills, is another Aggie who has excelled competitively and academically. Davie, a two-time Verizon Academic All-American and a three-time All-District VIII first-team honoree, has a 3.62 GPA and - like Rail - has been named winner of an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. He is a 17-time All-American - including six at this season's NCAA Division II Championships - has six individual top-three finishes as the PCSC Championships, and qualified for the 2002 U.S. Swimming National Championships. Among his 17 All-America honors are four each for the 500 freestyle and 1,650 freestyle. Davie has also volunteered as a swim instructor and assisted on several charity drives as a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
