WHEREAS, The Washington State Senate honors the women and girls who have overcome barriers in sports, making excellent role models for young girls and women across the state; we renew our commitment to female athletes and the promise and drive they exhibit both on and off the field; and
     WHEREAS, Participation of girls and young women in high school sports reached a new all-time high in the 2012-13 school year, with an additional 15,190 female student athletes participating from the year before; and
     WHEREAS, Participation in athletics is one of the most effective ways for girls and women in the United States to develop leadership and communication skills, discipline, initiative, and self-confidence that contribute to a healthy life at home, school, work, and society as a whole; and
     WHEREAS, Not only do active girls and young women tend to have higher self-esteem, reduced risk for heart disease, and other illnesses, but these students who participate in sports tend to have better grades and are more likely to graduate; and
     WHEREAS, The Washington State Senate urges media outlets to provide equal coverage for the accomplishments of women and girls in sports, as they provide for men and boys, noting that vibrant news stories can inspire our young girls to become successful and healthy athletes; and
     WHEREAS, Washington high schools foster outstanding achievements in all women's sports, including state volleyball champions: Bellarmine Prep, Mercer Island, Burlington-Edison, Cascade (Leavenworth), Colfax, and "3 peat" state volleyball champion and state academic champion, Tekoa-Oakesdale; state soccer champions: Central Valley, Liberty (Issaquah), Sumner, University Prep, and Crosspoint Academy; state softball champions: Arlington, Kamiakin, Selah, Connell, Toutle Lake, and Colton; state tennis champions: Skyview, Mercer Island, West Valley (Yakima), and Cashmere; state cross-country champions: Bellarmine Prep, Glacier Peak, Sehome, and Lakeside; and state track and field champions: Federal Way, Kamiakin, and Sehome; and
     WHEREAS, This year the Washington State Senate honors Northwest Christian High School (Lacey) for its girls cross-country and track teams. Its cross-country team won an all-time state record (for any classification) for eight consecutive state championships in 2013, one of the longest consecutive active girls' state championship streaks in the country. The Olympian also selected Northwest Christian High School's girls team performance as one of the top ten sport stories of the year, on top of its winning a WIAA outstanding academic award for having a team average GPA of 3.7; and
     WHEREAS, The Washington State Senate recognizes the several teams who have won state championships in dance, drill, and cheer in Washington high schools, including dance state champions: Eastlake, Todd Beamer, Moses Lake, Kentridge, Shorecrest, Hazen, and Tumwater; drill state champions: Moses Lake, Decatur, and Lake Washington; and cheer state champions: Hockinson, Kentwood, Meadowdale, Skyline, Richland, Bethel, Juanita, Selah, and Union; and
     WHEREAS, This past year, Washington high schools won state championships in swim and dive: Newport (Bellevue), Mercer Island, and Pullman; gymnastics: Emerald Ridge and Enumclaw; state golf champions: Bear Creek, Woodland, Bellingham, Hanford, and Bellarmine Prep; and wrestling: Warden; and
     WHEREAS, The Washington State Senate honors our outstanding institutions of higher education for continuing to produce elite female athletes who compete with pride, commitment, and passion; and
     WHEREAS, Pacific Lutheran University's volleyball team members slammed their way to the Northwest Conference Champion title in 2013; and a member of its softball team, Kaaren Hatlen, was named one of nine finalists for the 2013 NCAA Woman of the Year award. This award recognizes top achieving female student athletes for their athletic excellence, academic achievements, community outreach, and leadership; and
     WHEREAS, The University of Puget Sound athletic department offers eleven women's varsity sports at the Division III level, giving two hundred ten female student athletes the opportunity to compete in collegiate athletics; its women's soccer squad has won twelve consecutive NWC titles, the longest active title streak in Division III women's soccer history; and its women's crew squad has reached the NCAA tournament eleven years in a row while competing as an independent; and
     WHEREAS, The Washington State Senate honors the hard work and dedication shown by the University of Puget Sound coach Aaron Benson and Betsy Bayliss, as well as its student crew members Carly Fox, Leah Shamlian, Dina Mustakim, and Kenzie Marshall; and
     WHEREAS, Seattle University's women's basketball team won the 2012-13 Western Athletic Conference regular season title in March 2013. Its head coach, Joan Bonvicini, was named WAC Coach of the Year, while Kacie Sowell earned WAC Player of the Year; and
     WHEREAS, Hannah Mittelstaedt won the 3000 meter steeplechase at the Western Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, becoming the first Seattle University female to win a Division I conference title since the Redhawk program received full NCAA Division I membership; and cross-country runner Lauren Hammerle was named First Team All-WAC, and Lila Rice was honored as WAC Freshman of the Year in 2013; and
     WHEREAS, The Seattle University women's soccer team completed an undefeated conference season, winning every WAC regular season and tournament match to earn the league's regular season and tournament titles. Head coach Julie Woodward was named WAC Coach of the Year, and Stephanie Verdoia was named WAC Offensive Player of the Year; and
     WHEREAS, University of Washington women's softball team finished third at the NCAA College World Series; and its volleyball team won the Pac-12 championship title and also made it to the semi-finals of the 2013 NCAA Tournament; Krista Vansant was named Pac-12 Player of the Year, AVCA National Player of the Year, the Seattle Female Sports Star of the Year, and won the Volleyball Honda Award; and
     WHEREAS, University of Washington's goalkeeper for the women's soccer team, Megan Kufeld, earned the UW President's Medal for High Scholarship as the student with the highest GPA in her class; women's crew won its seventh consecutive Windermere cup and also finished seventh at the national championships; and track and field athletes, Megan Goethals and Kristine Felix were Pac-12 Champions in the 5000 meter run and pole vault, respectively; and
     WHEREAS, Lynda Goodrich, Director of Athletics at Western Washington University for twenty-six years, has shown dedication and passion for the development of female athletes and women's sports overall; she was the recipient of the 2014 Division 2 Athletic Directors' Association Lifetime Achievement Award; and
     WHEREAS, Western Washington University's women's basketball team reached the semifinals at the 2013 NCAA Division II National Championships, won the West Regional championship, and ranked number three in USA Today Top Twenty-five Poll; its head coach Carmen Dolfo was named CaptainU NCAA II National Coach of the Year; and
     WHEREAS, Western Washington University's women's soccer team reached the semifinals at the 2014 NCAA Division II National Championships, won the West Regional title, finished with a 20-2-1 record, the win total being a school record, and ranked number three in the final National Soccer Coaches Association of America Top Twenty-five; and
     WHEREAS, Seattle Pacific University women's soccer team won the 2013 Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament championship; and
     WHEREAS, Eastern Washington University's basketball star, Hayley Hodgins, was named the Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year; and its track and field star, Keisa Monterola, won her second consecutive pole vault title at the Big Sky Conference Outdoor Championship Meet; and
     WHEREAS, Eastern Washington University women's golf received the NCAA Public Recognition Award for having a perfect Academic Progress Rate of 1,000 for the second consecutive year; its women's soccer received the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic Award for the eleventh straight year; and basketball earned a spot on the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Academic Top Twenty-five Honor Roll for the twelfth time; and
     WHEREAS, Washington State is proud to be the home of many professional women's sports teams that exhibit passion and pride, supporting our communities both on and off the field; and
     WHEREAS, The Washington State Senate celebrates women's roller derby. The Seattle City Council has proclaimed January 18th "Rat City Roller Girls Day" in honor of their tenth anniversary; we also honor the 2013 USA Roller Sports National Roller Derby champions, the Oly Rollers; and
     WHEREAS, Washington State honors the beginning of the second year of our professional women's soccer team, the Seattle Reign FC and their new home at Memorial Stadium. We wish them well as they begin their 2014 season; and
     WHEREAS, We recognize the beginning of the 2014 season of our professional women's tackle football teams, the Seattle Majestics, Everett Reign, and Tacoma Trauma; We honor the Seattle Majestics for taking part in the WIAA Girls and Women in Sports and Leadership Conference, which helps spread the word to young women about dedication, hard work, and balance as it relates to sports, family, and life; and
     WHEREAS, Washington State proudly honors our women's professional basketball team, the Seattle Storm; in the wake of the immensely publicized Seahawks victory, we would like to add to our Washington sport's pride and reiterate that the Storm took home national championships in 2004 and 2010; we urge that the Storm be celebrated as a major sports league, as its players have won as many national championships as the Mariners, Seahawks, and former Sonics combined, and we ask that the media do the same; and
     WHEREAS, The Seattle Storm qualified for the 2013 WNBA Playoffs, setting a WNBA record with ten consecutive playoff appearances; Tina Thompson, the first overall draft pick in the WNBA's inaugural draft in 1997, became the first WNBA player ever to record 7,000 career points and 3,000 career rebounds, and after retiring following this past season, leaves the league as the all-time leader in points scored and games played; Tanisha Wright, competing her ninth season in Seattle, was named the 2013 WNBA All-Defensive first team for the fourth time in her career; and, off the court, the Storm continues its strong community impact, hosting events from library readings, Make-A-Wish, basketball camps, girls 5K runs, and hospital visits; and
     WHEREAS, Our state continues to foster star Olympians with many female athletes who represented the United States and Washington at the 2014 Sochi Winter games, including Angeli VanLaanen, a freestyle skier from Bellingham; Sadie Bjornsen, a cross-country skier from Winthrop with three United States titles already; twenty-one year-old Jacqueline Wiles, who grew up skiing at Mount Hood and White Pass, sped her way to the C squad after taking the 2013 United States downhill title; and
     WHEREAS, These women and many more not mentioned here are sterling examples of what is possible through hard work, focus, and determination; and
     WHEREAS, The twenty-eighth annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day took place on February 5th, 2014;
     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate honor Washington girls and women in sports on February 26th, 2014, and encourage others to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities; and
     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to all of the aforementioned athletes and their respective institutions.