Dec. 20, 2008

MILWAUKEE - Marquette senior guard Krystal Ellis is among the 30 senior female NCAA college basketball players as candidates for the 2008-09 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. The award is presented annually to an NCAA Division I student-athlete in nine sports.

Along with fellow senior Jerel McNeal on the list, Marquette is one of five schools to place both a male and female student-athlete on the roster of candidates. The other schools include Duke, North Carolina and Pittsburgh.

Based on criteria focusing on the "Four C's" of classroom, character, community and competition, the award winners will be selected by national balloting of head basketball coaches, national media and college basketball fans. Lowe's, an official corporate partner of the NCAA, will present the winners with trophies during the weekends of the respective NCAA Men's and Women's Final Four.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award was launched during the 2001-02 season to honor the attributes of college basketball seniors who remain committed to their university and pursue the many rewards that a senior season and complete college education brings.

From the list of 30 nominees, a national media committee will select 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in February 2009. Those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote. In addition to voting by Division I head basketball coaches and national media, college basketball fans will also be able to submit ballots by text voting or on-line at www.seniorclassaward.com.

ABOUT THE AWARD
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award honors the attributes of senior student-athletes in four areas: classroom, community, character and competition. The award program is designed exclusively for college seniors who are utilizing their complete athletic eligibility, remaining committed to their university and pursuing the many rewards that a senior season can bring. For more information, visit www.seniorclassaward.com.

ABOUT LOWE'S
With fiscal year 2007 sales of $48.3 billion, Lowe's Companies, Inc. is a FORTUNE® 50 company that serves approximately 14 million customers a week at more than 1,625 home improvement stores in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1946 and based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe's is the second-largest home improvement retailer in the world. For more information, visit www.lowes.com