July 9, 2008
Complete Athlete of the Year Release with Previous Winners in PDF Format 
IRVING, Texas - Conference USA Commissioner Britton Banowsky announced today that Memphis men's basketball player Chris Douglas-Roberts and Houston softball pitcher Angel Shamblin were named the 2007-08 C-USA Athletes of the Year. Douglas-Roberts becomes the first men's basketball player to win in the five-year history of the award, while Shamblin also becomes the first softball student-athlete but the fourth Houston Cougar to be represented.
Douglas-Roberts led the Tigers to their third straight C-USA regular season and tournament titles, as well as the 2008 NCAA Championship game. The 2008 C-USA Player of the Year and two-time first-team selection was also named to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team, repeating the same honor he had won the week before at the Houston Regional. Douglas-Roberts averaged 23.3 points and 4.2 rebounds in NCAA Tournament, with 28 points in the Final Four win over UCLA. A 2007-08 consensus All-America first-team pick by the Associated Press, National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), United States Basketball Writers of America (USBWA), The Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, ESPN.com and CollegeHoops.net, he led the team in scoring (18.1 ppg) and three-point field goal percentage (.413). Douglas-Roberts was a finalist for three prestigious national awards: Oscar Robertson Trophy, John Wooden Award and Naismith Trophy. He was also named to the Naismith and Rivals.com All-America squads. Douglas-Roberts finished his career with 1,545 points, ranking ninth on the Memphis career scoring chart and 15th in Conference USA. He netted a career-high 33 points against UConn in the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic title game and earned MVP honors for that tournament, as well as being named Dick Vitale/ESPN.com National Player of the Week following that performance. Douglas-Roberts was a second-round selection in the 2008 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets.
Shamblin was named a Second Team NFCA All-America selection after completing her senior season with a 36-5 record and a 0.94 ERA. She led the Cougars to the Conference USA regular season title and a trip to the NCAA Softball Super Regionals. Her ERA and win totals set school single season records. Shamblin was also named to the NFCA All-South Region First Team and was the Conference USA Pitcher of the Year. She finished her senior campaign with two perfect games and 18 shutouts. Shamblin was also a Top 10 Finalist for the USA Softball Player of the Year. Shamblin became the league's first three-time Pitcher of the Year and was honored with 15 career weekly pitching honors and a record-tying six in 2008. Shamblin had 16 career C-USA weekly honors as both a hitter and a pitcher, which ties the conference career record set by Lindsay Chouinard of DePaul (2000-04). Shamblin is currently playing in the National Pro Fastpitch softball league for the Akron (Ohio) Racers.
The 2007-08 athletic season marked the fifth time that C-USA has honored Male and Female Athletes of the Year. The award is based solely on athletic achievement during an academic year and the winners are determined through a vote by the league's Directors of Athletics. A complete list of winners is attached.
