Kentucky's Bria Goss Nominated for Allstate WBCA Good Works Team
Dec. 3, 2014
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky women’s basketball senior guard Bria Goss was nominated for the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Allstate Good Works Team, it was announced Wednesday.
The award recognizes a select group of college basketball student-athletes who have made significant contributions to the greater good of their communities through volunteerism and civic service. In its second year, the Allstate WBCA and NABC Good Works Teams® honor players at all levels of college basketball who represent the sport’s finest in the areas of leadership and charitable achievements amongst their peers. The student-athletes nominated for this prestigious award embody the true spirit of teamwork and giving back.
From the 93 WBCA nominees and 158 NABC nominees submitted by coaches and sports information directors across the nation on behalf of their schools, special voting panels will select two 10-member teams comprised of five student-athletes from the NCAA® Division I level and five student-athletes from NCAA® Divisions II, III and the NAIA. The final roster of 20 award recipients will be unveiled in February.
The 2015 nominees uphold impressive service resumes detailing unique and inspiring stories of servitude. From volunteering with sick and underprivileged children to lobbying state legislature for new laws that could help save lives, this exceptional group of young men and women demonstrate the positive impact student-athletes can have on and off the court.
“I am so appreciative to have this opportunity,” Goss said. “On the floor, I strive to be my very best by maximizing my gifts that God has given me. Off the court, I want to be someone that exemplifies greatness and someone of high character. Being a positive role model to help others in the community always puts a smile on my face.”
A senior from Indianapolis, Goss is set to graduate in May of 2015 with a degree in communications with hopes of one day hosting her own television show. Because of her career goals, she has served as an intern with the UK public relations office, specifically for the daily production “UK Now”, UK’s online news portal. Goss also serves as the co-producer for the wildly popular The Matthew Mitchell Show (coach’s show) which airs on a weekly basis during the basketball season across the entire Southeastern Conference geographical footprint. Along with co-producing, she will host her own segment called “Behind the Blue with Bria.”
Goss plays a critical part in the success of the Wildcats, as she has been named team captain for the second straight season by head coach Matthew Mitchell. Known for her charming smile and always-positive attitude, Mitchell described Goss as one of the hardest-working student-athletes he has ever coached, as well as one of the most coachable.
“Bria is the epitome of what we want a Kentucky basketball player to be,” Mitchell said. “She is of the highest character, she has the greatest work ethic, she cares about people, she cares about this program, cares about Kentucky and cares about winning.”
Throughout her UK career, Goss has been active in the Lexington community, but in the summer of 2014, she took it to a different level, traveling to Ethiopia for a week-long service trip. Goss distributed necessities to victims of leprosy, accomplished minor home repairs to impoverished families, served food to prisoners, played games with orphans and spent a day building relationships with street boys. Additionally, Goss delivered beds and mattresses and bedding to several widows, most of whom had been sleeping on dirt floors on piles of straw. She has also volunteered locally by packing lunches for underprivileged students in the Lexington school systems for God’ Pantry and hand-delivering them to the schools. She has volunteered to stock clothes at Goodwill for countries with limited clothing and she helped make blankets for sick children at Kentucky Children’s Hospital.
On the court, Goss is one of UK’s all-time leading scorers with 1,104 career points. She currently averages 6.4 points and 3.9 rebounds per game and ranks second on the team in assists with 16. Goss has helped UK rank in the top 15 of the final national polls, chart 25-plus wins and advance to at least the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament all three seasons of her career.
Last season, UK’s Kastine Evans (Salem, Conn.) was named to the final Allstate WBCA Good Works Team.
More information about the Allstate WBCA Good Works Team® and the Allstate NABC Good Works Team® is available at www.wbca.org and www.nabc.org
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