Iowa’s Spencer Lee Finalist For AAU Sullivan Award

The AAU James E. Sullivan award winner will be announced Wednesday at 7 p.m. (CT) on a live stream at the Sports Stories Podcast on Facebook.

University of Iowa junior Spencer Lee is one of 10 finalist for the AAU James E. Sullivan Award, presented annually since 1930 to the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States. The winner is determined by public vote, media vote, and committee vote.

The 10 finalists include Lee, Evita Griskenas (USA Rhythmic Gymnastics), Grant Holloway (Florida track & field), Markus Howard (Marquette basketball), Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon basketball), Trevor Lawrence (Clemson football), Dana Rettke (Wisconsin volleyball), Kyla Ross (UCLA gymnastics), Megan Taylor (Maryland Lacrosse), and Abby Weitzeil (Cal swimming & diving).

Here is a list of Lee's 2019-2020 accomplishments as listed at hawkeysports.com:

• Hodge Trophy Winner
• NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler, lead the national with 5.0 average team points
• All-American
• Big Ten Champion (125 pounds)
• Big Ten Wrestler of the Year
• No. 1 seed at NCAA Championships
• Undefeated 18-0 record
• Outscored 18 opponents 234-18
• Four pins, all in the first period (0:54, 0:52, 2:21, 2:53)
• Nine technical falls, team high and most by a Hawkeye since Doug Schwab in 2000
• Four technical falls in the first period, all in under four minutes
• Scored bonus points in 16-of-18 matches
• Team-high 58 dual points scored
• Only four of 18 matches went the full seven minutes
• Wire-to-wire No. 1 ranked wrester at 125
• Seven wins over ranked opponents, four in the top 7, three in the top 5
• Sullivan Award semifinalist
• Won the U.S. Senior Natoinals to earn a spot at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials.

Representatives from the AAU created the AAU James E. Sullivan Award with the intent to recognize amateur contributions and achievements from non-professional athletes across the country. The AAU Sullivan Award is presented to the athlete who has demonstrated the most athletic success, as well as leadership, character and sportsmanship in the past year.

World renowned golfer Robert "Bobby" Jones received the inaugural award in 1930 and swimmer Anne Curtis became the first female to accept the award in 1944. Other notable athletes to win the award include famed Olympians Carl Lewis (1981), Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1986), Michael Phelps (2003) and Shawn Johnson (2008), former UCLA basketball star Bill Walton (1973) and University of Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning (1997). Most recently, ESPNW Player of the Year and NCAA Volleyball National Champion Kathryn Plummer was crowned the 89th AAU James E. Sullivan Award winner for her accomplishments in 2018.