Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell

KANSAS CITY, MO -- University of Delaware senior men’s lacrosse standouts Cam Howard and Tom Scherr (at right) are among 20 candidates nationwide for the 2008 Lowes Senior CLASS Award.

Howard, an attackman from Wilmington, DE (Tatnall School) and Scherr, a goalkeeper from Owings Mills, MD (Mt. St. Joseph’s School), are candidates for the annual award, which honors senior student-athletes for their excellence in athletics, academic, and community service.

The award, which honors student-athletes in eight different NCAA Division I sports, was launched in 2001 to honor the attributes of college basketball seniors who fulfill their entire athletic eligibility. Men’s lacrosse was added to the list last year with Cornell’s Matt McMonagle earning the award. CLASS is an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School.

Finalists for the award will be announced on March 27 and fans will be able to vote for their favorite player beginning on that date. The men’s lacrosse overall winner will be announced May 24.

Howard and Scherr have led the Blue Hens to a current 5-2 record and a No. 16 USILA national ranking heading into their Colonial Athletic Association opener Saturday, March 22 vs. Villanova at 7 p.m. The Hens went 13-6 a year ago, captured the CAA title, and advanced to the NCAA national semifinals for the first time in school history.

Howard, a three-time All-CAA selection, is a plant science and landscape horticulture major who plans to pursue a master’s degree in landscape architecture. Delaware’s active career scoring leader, he currently ranks No. 5 all-time at Delaware with 90 assists and No. 10 with 160 points. In seven games this season he has 21 points on eight goals and a team-high 13 assists.

Scherr, a third-year starter in goal for the Blue Hens and a two-time team captain, is an honor student as a chemical engineering major with a minor in mathematical sciences and economics at Delaware. He plans to enroll in medical school after graduation in May. He has been involved in several academic fellowships on campus and is a CoSIDA Academic All-American candidate. He has recorded 30 career wins at Delaware and his 445 career saves ranks No. 7 all-time in the UD record books. He has started all seven games in 200 and has posted a 10.61 goals against average and a .538 save percentage.

The other candidates are Mike Ammann, Steve Ammann, and Jordan Levine of Albany, Josh Black of Colgate, Danny Nathan and Michael Corbolotti of Cornell, Fletcher Gregory of North Carolina, Pat Grimm of Yale, Brett Koll of Denver, Mike Leveille of Syracuse, Craig Massie of Army, Ryan O’Donnell of Towson, Paul Rabil of Johns Hopkins, Brad Ross of Duke, Ben Rubeor of Virginia, Corey Spuler of Robert Morris, and Kevin Unterstein and Mike Unterstein of Hofstra.

For more information on the program and fan voting instructions, go to www.seniorclassaward.com.