This year’s 2016-17 NCAA Woman of the Year Top 30 honorees are comprised of 10 from each of the three NCAA divisions. As they excel as scholar-athletes (and additionally in leadership and community service), it is no surprise that again, the majority of the finalists are CoSIDA Academic All-America® honorees as well.
They represent 12 sports and a range of academic majors, including neuroscience, communications, biomedical engineering, sport management, political science and art, to name a few.
Here are more Academic All-America® numbers and statistics for these 30 NCAA WOTY finalists:
• of the 30, 20 have been named Academic All-America® at least once in their careers
• one of the honorees – MIT track and field standout Maryann Gong – is the reigning overall Division III Academic All-America® of the Year across all sports, male or female, for the last two academic years (2015-16 and 2016-17)
• two of the Top 30 earned the Female Academic All-America of the Year honors in their particular sport for their division (MIT’s Maryann Gong, who twice was the NCAA Division III track & field/cross country Female AAA of the Year; and Natalie O'Keefe of Southwest Baptist University, a two-sport standout in track and field and basketball who was selected the 2016-17 NCAA Division II Female AAA of the Year for track & field/cross country AAA of the Year)
• in their careers, these finalists have been awarded a total of 33 Academic All-America® honors: 21 First Team, five Second Team and seven Third Team honors
Story courtesy NCAA.org: http://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/top-30-named-2017-ncaa-woman-year-award
Top 30 named for 2017 NCAA Woman of the Year Award
Honorees, who represent 12 sports, were chosen from 543 school nominees
Meghan Durham
The
Top 30 honorees for the 2017 NCAA Woman of the Year Award have been named by the Woman of the Year selection committee.
Schools nominated a record 543 women for the award this year, which conferences then narrowed to 145 nominees to be considered by the committee.
The Top 30 honorees — including 10 from each of the three NCAA divisions — have demonstrated excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership. They represent 12 sports and a wide range of academic majors, including neuroscience, communication, biomedical engineering, sport management, political science and art.
“The Top 30 honorees are remarkable representatives of the thousands of women competing in college sports each year,” said Sarah Hebberd, chair of the Woman of the Year selection committee and director of compliance at Georgia. “They have seized every opportunity available to them on the field of play, in the classroom and in the community, and we are proud to recognize them for their outstanding achievements.”
In late September, the selection committee will announce three women from each division as the nine finalists. From the finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics will select the 2017 Woman of the Year, who will be named Oct. 22 at a ceremony in Indianapolis.
2017 Woman of the Year Top 30 Honorees
| Name |
School |
Conference |
Div. |
Sport(s) |
| Anderson, Sabrina |
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania |
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference |
II |
Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Barr, Serena |
Liberty University |
Non-Core Conference/Independent/Associate |
I |
Field Hockey |
| Brunworth, Kaitlyn |
Wingate University |
South Atlantic Conference |
II |
Soccer |
| Carlson, Clare |
Grand Valley State University |
Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
II |
Soccer |
| Carmichael, Jennifer |
University of Oklahoma |
Big 12 Conference |
I |
Outdoor Track and Field |
| Conboy, Caroline |
Hobart and William Smith Colleges |
Liberty League |
III |
Swimming and Diving |
| Crawford, Eliana |
Kenyon College |
North Coast Athletic Conference |
III |
Swimming and Diving |
| Crist, Lizzy |
Washington University in St. Louis |
University Athletic Association |
III |
Soccer |
| Domico, Alyssa |
Dominican University (Illinois) |
Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference |
III |
Softball |
| Donegan, Laura Rose |
University of New Hampshire |
America East Conference |
I |
Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Donnelly, Brooke |
Washington and Lee University |
Old Dominion Athletic Conf. |
III |
Tennis |
| Gibbons, Christina |
Duke University |
Atlantic Coast Conference |
I |
Soccer |
| Gong, Maryann |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference |
III |
Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Greenlee, Chardae |
University of Memphis |
American Athletic Conference |
I |
Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Hasty, Morgan |
Johnson C. Smith University |
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association |
II |
Softball, Volleyball |
| Hompe, Olivia |
Princeton University |
The Ivy League |
I |
Lacrosse |
| Hoynaski, Nicole |
Hawaii Pacific University |
Pacific West Conference |
II |
Tennis |
| January, Jessica |
DePaul University |
Big East Conference |
I |
Basketball |
| Johnson, Jamie |
Lewis University |
Great Lakes Valley Conference |
II |
Basketball |
| Kosobud, Allison |
College of Saint Benedict |
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
III |
Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Krick, Katie |
Nebraska Wesleyan University |
Iowa Intercol. Athletic Conf. |
III |
Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Madzia, Juliana |
University of Cincinnati |
American Athletic Conference |
I |
Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Martinez, Kaina |
Texas A&M University-Kingsville |
Lone Star Conference |
II |
Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Melian, Christina |
Stony Brook University |
America East Conference |
I |
Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Momirov, Jelena |
Barry University |
Sunshine State Conference |
II |
Rowing |
| O'Keefe, Natalie |
Southwest Baptist University |
Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association |
II |
Basketball, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Perez, Jayme |
East Texas Baptist University |
American Southwest Conference |
III |
Softball |
| Pronovost, Maddie |
Middlebury College |
New England Small College Athletic Conference |
III |
Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Rayas, Cashlee |
Dallas Baptist University |
Heartland Conference |
II |
Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field |
| Van Landeghem, Chantal |
University of Georgia |
Southeastern Conference |
I |
Swimming and Diving |