USTFCCCA News & Notes
T&F Athletes Among NCAA Woman of the Year Top-30 Honorees
The NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee has named the top 30 honorees for the 2016 Woman of the Year Award.
A record 517 school nominees were submitted this year, which was whittled down to 142 conference nominees. The committee selected 30 women from that pool – 10 from each of the three NCAA divisions – representing 13 sports and a host of undergraduate majors, including biology, accounting, criminal justice, education, engineering and computer science.
The top 30 honorees have demonstrated excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership.
“This year’s top 30 honorees have achieved remarkable things during their time in college,” said Sarah Hebberd, chair of the Woman of the Year selection committee and director of compliance at the University of Georgia. “They are model student-athletes for generations of young women to come, and we are immeasurably proud of their accomplishments.”
The selection committee will name nine finalists – three women from each division – in late September. From the nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics will select the 2016 Woman of the Year, who will be announced Oct. 16 at a ceremony in Indianapolis.
Highlighted individuals below denote student-athletes from track & field and/or cross country.
| Name | School | Conference |
|---|---|---|
| Acker, Rachael | University of California, Berkeley | Pac-12 Conference |
| Balinskas, Tracey | Molloy College | East Coast Conference |
| Blazing, Lauren | Duke University | Atlantic Coast Conference |
| Bombardier, Rachel | Castleton University | North Athletic Conference |
| Chappell-Dick, Hannah | Eastern Mennonite University | Old Dominion Athletic Conference |
| Coyne, Kendall | Northeastern University | Colonial Athletic Association |
| Ellis-Watson, Taylor | University of Arkansas, Fayetteville | Southeastern Conference |
| Guo, Margaret | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference |
| Hillman, Christina | Iowa State University | Big 12 Conference |
| Kahnweiler, Kim | Bowdoin College | New England Small College Athletic Conference |
| Kiblinger, Elizabeth | Maryville University of St. Louis | Great Lakes Valley Conference |
| Kuhnen, Maia | Clayton State University | Peach Belt Conference |
| Leeper, Bri | West Texas A&M University | Lone Star Conference |
| Lester, Maurissa | Limestone College | Conference Carolinas |
| Martin, Lauren | Adams State University | Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference |
| McCleney, Haylie | University of Alabama | Southeastern Conference |
| McCormack, Kara | University of Miami (FL) | Atlantic Coast Conference |
| Monnat, Maggie | Le Moyne University | Northeast-10 Conference |
| Pruden, Cathleen | Mount Holyoke College | New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference |
| Robinson, Marissa | Kean University | New Jersey Athletic Conference |
| Rohn, Faith | Palm Beach Atlantic University | Independent |
| Siebert, Elayna | Carson-Newman University | South Atlantic Conference |
| Spieler, Katie | University of Hawaii, Manoa | Big West Conference |
| Steinke, Ruth | Carleton College | Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
| Tillo, Emily | Boston University | Patriot League |
| Townsend, Haley | Kenyon College | North Coast Athletic Conference |
| Turner, Cameasha | University of Texas, El Paso | Conference USA |
| Vann, Sasa | SUNY- Buffalo State | State University of New York Athletic Conference |
| Viti, Amy | Misericordia University | Middle Atlantic Conference |
| Wilson, Channing | California State University, Stanislaus | California Collegiate Athletic Association |