Emily Sissom nominated for national honor

Cannon County High School graduate and Union University guard, Emily Sissom, has been nominated for the 2015 Allstate WBCA Good Works Team.

For the third year, Allstate and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) are recognizing a select group of women's college basketball student-athletes who stand out for their charitable achievements and community involvement. The players nominated for this prestigious honor are committed to enriching the lives of others while contributing to the greater good of their communities.

Sissom boasts an impressive resume of community service accomplishments, which include:

* Volunteering at the Hub Club, an inner city ministry that is a part of the local Area Relief Ministries
* Leading her teammates in the annual Campus and Community day at Union which send out hundreds of students and teams into the community to serve schools, ministries, widows and groups with many different needs
* Contributing to the Carl Perkins Child Abuse Center's Christmas with the Kids event
From this year's list of 93 nominees, a final roster of 10 award recipients - comprised of five players from the Division I level and five players from Divisions II, III and the NAIA - will be announced in February.

"The accomplishments of student-athletes extend far beyond successes achieved on the court, and Allstate is proud to recognize this exceptional group of young men and women for the positive impact they are making in their communities," said Pam Hollander, vice president of marketing for Allstate Insurance Co. and a member of the 2015 NABC and WBCA Good Works Teams selection panels.

"Their stories of powerful and selfless acts, shared by SIDs and coaches across the nation, represent the best of collegiate student-athletes and serve as an inspiration to us all," Hollander said.

For the third year, the Good Works Teams help spotlight the off-the-court good works and service to others that often goes unnoticed and unrewarded. From creating organizations benefiting at-risk youth to volunteering overseas to help impoverished communities, there are countless remarkable stories of service among this year's group of nominees.

"The Allstate WBCA Good Works Team is a prominent award that honors those student-athletes who serve the community," said Danielle Donehew, executive director of the WBCA. "We celebrate the commitment these 93 nominees have made to their respective communities and we are grateful to Allstate for recognizing these individuals for their exceptional efforts."

Members of the Allstate WBCA Good Works Team will be recognized during the 2015 WBCA Convention and at the 2015 NCAA Women's Final Four in Tampa Bay, and will also participate in a local community project. Allstate is an official corporate partner of the NABC, WBCA and NCAA.

"In this third year of the Allstate NABC Good Works Team® program, we had an overwhelming response with 158 nominations for 2015," said NABC Executive Director Jim Haney. "There are so many young men and women in college basketball today who make extraordinary and selfless contributions locally, nationally and globally. This is a tremendous opportunity to not only recognize the best of the best but honor all of these student-athletes for their achievements away from the court."

Former Duke University student-athlete, two-time NCAA champion and seven-time NBA All-Star Grant Hill will headline the Allstate NABC Good Works Team® voting panel, while WNBA basketball star Tamika Catchings, who played at the University of Tennessee, will serve on the Allstate WBCA Good Works Team panel.

More information about the Allstate NABC Good Works Team® and the Allstate WBCA Good Works Team® is available at www.nabc.org and www.wbca.org.