WHEREAS, Participation in athletics is one of the most effective
ways for girls and women in the United States to develop leadership
skills, discipline, initiative, and self-confidence; and
WHEREAS, Female athletes now compete in twenty-eight of the thirty-two total events held during the Winter and Summer Olympic Games; and
WHEREAS, One in three girls participates in high school sports; and
WHEREAS, Girls and women who participate in sports are shown to
improve cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, fatigue, anxiety,
self-esteem, depression, happiness, and several components of quality
of life; and
WHEREAS, Adolescent and teen female athletes are more likely to
have positive body images and sport participation can be used as a
therapeutic and preventative intervention for enhancing physical and
mental health; and
WHEREAS, Participation in sports produces a positive self-concept,
educational aspirations, better school attendance, higher math and
science enrollment, more time spent on homework, and more enrollment in
honors courses; and
WHEREAS, Eighty-two percent of executive businesswomen participated
in organized sports during secondary school; and
WHEREAS, The bonds formed among girls and women through sports help
to break down the social barriers of prejudice and discrimination; and
WHEREAS, High schools and universities across Washington State
continue to produce and support elite athletes who are motivated and
successful in their future endeavors; and
WHEREAS, The National Girls and Women in Sports Coalition declared
February 1, 2012, to be the 26th annual National Girls and Women in
Sports day; and
WHEREAS, High school girls' athletic teams in the state of
Washington have achieved many triumphs and successes that provide an
inspiration to promote the values of teamwork and cooperation; and
WHEREAS, Washington's high schools and universities foster
outstanding achievements in girls' and women's sports, such as
volleyball, softball, basketball, soccer, tennis, lacrosse, crew, and
wrestling. This includes accomplishments for Washington State teams
such as Metro League Champions, WIAA tournament first team selections,
State Academic Awards, State championships, Elite Eight NCAA
tournaments winners, NCAA super regional teams, All-Big Sky conference
honors, and All-American individual honors; and
WHEREAS, Washington State's high school girls' teams have achieved
many accomplishments that continue to provide a foundation for future
generations of young athletes to commit to the ideas of leadership and
teamwork; and
WHEREAS, Skyline High School's girls' soccer team won the state
championships; and
WHEREAS, Holy Names Academy's track team were Metro League
Champions, SeaKing District 2 Champions, and WIAA 3A State Champions;
and
WHEREAS, Holy Names Academy's Erika Johnson was Seattle Times'
Washington State Player of the year 2011 for Basketball, and McDonald's
All America High School Nominee; and
WHEREAS, Auburn High School's Katrynia Todd won the State
Championships in Girls' Wrestling; and
WHEREAS, Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart's girls' soccer
team won the State Academic award by having the highest GPA of 1A girls
soccer teams in Washington State with a 3.78 average; and
WHEREAS, Bainbridge High School's girls' swim and dive team placed
second in the 3A state championships; and
WHEREAS, Bainbridge High School's girls' lacrosse team won the
state championships; and
WHEREAS, Caitlin Chambers of Mercer Island High School was the
diving champion for the 4A girls' swim league; and
WHEREAS, Out of the 808 total athletes at the University of
Washington, 413 are female; at Gonzaga University 204 out of 394 are
female; and 198 out of 378 athletes at Seattle University are female;
and
WHEREAS, Northwest University's women's soccer team had six all-conference female players named players of the year and were finalists
in the conference championship; and
WHEREAS, Central Washington University's women's softball team won
first place in the Great Northwest Athletic conference for the second
year in a row; and
WHEREAS, Kelsey Haupert of Central Washington University led the
nation in home runs for Division 2; and
WHEREAS, Stacey Hagensen of Pacific Lutheran University was named
Northwest Conference Pitcher of the Year for Softball; and
WHEREAS, Gonzaga University's Janelle Bekkering represented Canada
at the 2010 "Federation Internationale de Basketball Amateur" (FIBA)
World Championships for women's basketball; and
WHEREAS, Western Washington's women's rowing squad won its seventh
straight National Collegiate Athletic Association National Crown which
is the longest winning streak by any school in any division; and
WHEREAS, Western Washington's Sara Porter was named an All-American
in women's cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and
field and was named Great Northwest Athletic Conference Woman Athlete
of the Year; and
WHEREAS, Eastern Washington University had fourteen student
athletes from Washington State to earn All-Big Sky conference honors;
and
WHEREAS, Eastern Washington University's women's volleyball team
tied for the best overall GPA of any squad, men or women's, in the Big
Sky conference for the 2010-2011 academic year; and
WHEREAS, Kyla Evans from Eastern Washington University was one of
twenty-nine female student athletes among I, II, and III schools in the
nation to receive a NCAA postgraduate grant to be used toward
completion of an advanced degree; and
WHEREAS, Washington State University had a total of six women from
women's track and field, women's rowing, and women's volleyball named
All-American athletes; and
WHEREAS, Seattle Pacific University had four women's teams, soccer,
volleyball, indoor track, and outdoor track, make it into the Great
Northwest Athletic Conference Championship; and
WHEREAS, Elle Kerfoot of Seattle University's women's basketball
team was selected to represent Canada at the World University Games in
China; and
WHEREAS, University of Washington's women's volleyball and soccer
teams were represented in Elite Eight NCAA Tournament; and
WHEREAS, University of Washington's women's softball team was
invited to NCAA super-regionals; and
WHEREAS, University of Puget Sound's women's soccer team were
conference champions for the tenth year in a row, which is the longest
active title streak in its women's soccer division; and
WHEREAS, Walla Walla University's Emily Yip, Heather Mcfadden, Kara
Moor, and Victoria Buell were selected onto the national All-Academic
Team for Volleyball; and
WHEREAS, The 2011 Lacrosse All-American team includes Jaclyn
Biggers of Bainbridge, Katie Mincin of Issaquah, and Meaghan Hess of
Snohomish; and
WHEREAS, Auburn High School's Melanie Roach won a Bronze medal at
the Pan Am Games for weight-lifting and participated in the 2008
Olympic Games in Beijing where she set an American Record for lifting
193 kilos; and
WHEREAS, Washington is honored to be the host of the Women's
National Basketball Association 2010 champions, the Seattle Storm, the
only women's professional basketball team in the Northwest and the
first major professional sports team in Seattle to bring home two
championship titles, one in 2004 and one in 2010; and
WHEREAS, Washington has many Roller Derby teams including the Oly
Rollers who went to Nationals for the second time this year and placed
second in the country;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate
honor National Girls and Women in Sports Day on February 1, 2012, and
encourage support for our states' female athletes and athletic
programs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be
immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the
Washington State Senate and all of the aforementioned athletes and
their respective institutions.