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Baylor’s Diene named Big 12 Sportsperson of the Year
Baylor University basketball player Mamadou Diene was named the male 2007-08 Big 12 Sportsperson of the Year, the conference announced.
Katie Martincich, a junior Kansas volleyball player, was named the female Sportsperson of the Year.
According to a release from the Big 12, the Sportspersons of the Year Award was started in 2000-01 to annually recognize student-athletes who displayed an extraordinary degree of sportsmanship and/or community service during the academic year. Martincich and Diene were selected by a media panel. The Big 12’s recipients are nominated for the NCAA Sportsmanship Award.
A native of Senegal, Diene has been active in service projects such as Waco ISD’s Raise Your Game, at South Bosque Elementary School and the Hillcrest Professional Development School’s health fair. He is a member of BU’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council, has been selected as the 2008 Wilma Rudolph Award winner and participated in the 2006 NCAA Leadership Conference in Orlando, Fla.
To help minimize his expenses, the 7-0 center does not own a car or cell phone so that he can send money back to Senegal to help support his family. Both of his parents died prior to his 14th birthday, leaving his older sisters to raise him. He is the first member of his family to attend a university and is on track to graduate in August, just 3 1/2 years after arriving at Baylor.
Diene is the second Baylor player to receive the Sportsperson honor. Lady Bear basketball player Jessika Stratton was selected in 2004.
Permalink | Comments (3) | Post your comment | Categories: Headlines, Baylor sports
Comments
By WacoProud
May 28, 2008 2:56 PM | Link to this
What a great honor for such an outstanding young man. Mamadou is just one in a long line of great representatives of Baylor University. We’re proud to call Mamadou a Baylor Bear!
By BearMarket
May 28, 2008 3:08 PM | Link to this
Great job, Dou. You are a class act and a great ambassador for Baylor.
Next year, I hope you have no shot at this award because you are too busy dunking on your hapless opponents and sending back their weak shots while giving them the Mutombo finger waive.
By Eduardo
May 28, 2008 3:27 PM | Link to this
Muy bueno, Dou! Our Baylor “family” is very proud of you. Thank you for being such a positive representative and tremendous ambassador of Baylor University. May you continue to have much success in all of your endeavors. Sic’em Bears!