The NCAA has announced the Top 30 honorees for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year award. The 30 were selected from 605 school nominees, a new record. The group consists of 10 athletes each from the NCAA’s 3 divisions. Established in 1991, the NCAA Woman of the Year award recognizes graduating female college athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves in academics, athletics, service and leadership throughout their collegiate careers.
In early October, the selection committee will announce 9 finalists, 3 from each division. The top 30 will all be celebrated and the winner will be announced at a ceremony this fall.
14 sports are represented in this year’s Top 30. Among the honorees are 3 swimmers and 1 diver. From Division I are swimmers Raena Eldridge of Texas A&M (College Station) and Asia Seidt of Kentucky, and diver Alison Gibson of the University of Texas (Austin). The fourth nominee is Emily Hageboeck of Division III Washington and Lee University.
Here are brief bios of each swimmer:
- Raena Eldridge was a key contributor for the Aggies all four years at the SEC championships. She is four-time CSCAA All-American. Her sophomore year, she earned All-SEC Second Team honors. A Genetics and Animal Science major, she maintained a 3.979 GPA throughout her college career. She is currently in Vet School at NC State.
- Alison Gibson’s diving career at UT-Austin was highlighted by six All-America honors and one honorable mention All-America honor. She was a four-time Big 12 conference champion, winning the one-meter (323.35) and placing second on the three-meter (381.60) at the 2020 Big 12 Championships. She also competed at the 2020 NCAA Zone D Championships before the cancellation of the 2020 NCAA Championships due to the Covid-19 pandemic, winning three-meter (687.15) and placing second on the one-meter (603.85). Gibson is currently pursuing a master’s in Advertising at UT-Austin.
- Emily Hageboeck is one of the most successful swimmers in Washington and Lee history. She is a 14-time All-American and is the program, conference and conference meet record holder in the 100 breast, 200 breast, 400 IM, 200 medley relay and the 400 medley relay. She has earned two straight CoSIDA All-America honors and was named a CSCAA All-American three years in a row.
- Asia Seidt graduated summa cum laude from the University of Kentucky in May. She holds the most swimming records of anyone – male or female, swimmer or diver – in Kentucky history, earning the most All-America honors, NCAA Championship podium finishes, SEC Championship medals and All-SEC First Team selections. Throughout her decorated career, Seidt has earned 21 All-America honors, 15 SEC championship medals, and 8 NCAA championship podium finishes. She is also the school-record holder in 5 individual events and was a 2-time Olympic Trials qualifier. Seidt announced her retirement from swimming earlier this year.
Honorees by sport:
- Triathlon – 1
- Cross Country – 4
- Indoor/Outdoor Track and Field – 8
- Soccer – 2
- Basketball – 5
- Swimming and Diving – 4
- Softball – 3
- Tennis – 2
- Golf – 1
- Field Hockey – 2
- Volleyball – 1
- Ice Hockey – 1
- Rugby – 1
All 2020 Top 30 Honorees:
| Nominee Name | School Name | Division | Conference | Sports | Major |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlotte Luise Ahrens | Arizona State University | Division I | Independent | Triathlon | Supply chain management |
| Nia Akins | University of Pennsylvania | Division I | The Ivy League | Cross Country, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field | Nursing; Nutrition science |
| Emily Berzolla | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Division III | New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference | Soccer | Mechanical engineering |
| Cassidy Boensch | Grand Valley State University | Division II | Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | Basketball | Biochemistry |
| Addison Cantor | Florida Southern College | Division II | Sunshine State Conference | Cross Country, Outdoor Track and Field | Biochemistry and molecular biology |
| Maddi Chitsey-Crisler | Lubbock Christian University | Division II | Lone Star Conference | Basketball | Exercise sport science: health promotion |
| Gina Dello Russo | Stevens Institute of Technology | Division III | Middle Atlantic Conferences | Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field | Mechanical engineering |
| Raena Eldridge | Texas A&M University, College Station | Division I | Southeastern Conference | Swimming and Diving | Genetics; Animal science |
| Brittny Ellis | University of Miami (Florida) | Division I | Atlantic Coast Conference | Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field | Nursing |
| Alelee Figueroa | Florida A&M University | Division I | Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference | Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field | Criminal justice: pre-law studies |
| Aly Fowler | Spring Hill College | Division II | Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference | Softball | Biology; Psychology |
| Alison Gibson | University of Texas at Austin | Division I | Big 12 Conference | Swimming and Diving | Advertising: media and analytics |
| Emily Hageboeck | Washington and Lee University | Division III | Old Dominion Athletic Conference | Swimming and Diving | Accounting |
| Kierstin Hensley | West Virginia State University | Division II | Mountain East Conference | Tennis | Psychology |
| DeAnna Hernandez | Texas Lutheran University | Division III | Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference | Softball | Biochemistry |
| Jaime Jacob | California State University, San Marcos | Division II | California Collegiate Athletic Association | Golf | Global business management: marketing |
| Arielle Johnston | Salisbury University | Division III | Capital Athletic Conference | Field Hockey | Community health |
| Stasia Mallin | University of Memphis | Division I | American Athletic Conference | Soccer | Biomedical engineering |
| Annie McCullough | Tusculum University | Division II | South Atlantic Conference | Tennis | Chemistry: mathematics and solar energy research |
| Faith McKie | Claflin University | Division II | Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association | Cross Country, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field | Sport management |
| Audrey Miller | Loras College | Division III | American Rivers Conference | Cross Country, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field | Chemistry |
| Emma Morgan-Bennett | Swarthmore College | Division III | Centennial Conference | Volleyball | Medical anthropology |
| Sophie Nick | Vassar College | Division III | Liberty League | Basketball | Biochemistry |
| Erica Ogwumike | Rice University | Division I | Conference USA | Basketball | Health sciences; Policy studies |
| Mikayla Pivec | Oregon State University | Division I | Pac-12 Conference | Basketball, Outdoor Track and Field | BioHealth sciences |
| Yuleska Ramirez-Tejeda | Emmanuel College (Massachusetts) | Division III | Great Northeast Athletic Conference | Basketball, Softball | Criminal justice |
| Asia Seidt | University of Kentucky | Division I | Southeastern Conference | Swimming and Diving | Kinesiology – exercise science |
| Lexi Thomeczek | The College of St. Scholastica | Division III | Northern Collegiate Hockey Association | Ice Hockey | Nursing |
| Juah Toe | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | Division II | National Intercollegiate Rugby Association | Rugby | Psychology |
| Laura van der Doorn | Southern New Hampshire University | Division II | Northeast-10 Conference | Field Hockey | Sociology |