FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Two student-athletes named as NE10 nominees for NCAA Woman of the Year
Official NCAA Release | Predanic NE10 WOTY Release | van der Doorn NE10 WOTY Release
MANSFIELD, Mass. – Today Nina Predanic of Saint Rose Women's Soccer and Laura van der Doorn of Southern New Hampshire Field Hockey were announced by the NCAA as two of its 161 conference nominees who will move forward in the NCAA Woman of the Year selection process.
The 161 conference nominees represent student-athletes from 21 different sports in all three NCAA Divisions. Of those nominated, 59 nominees competed in Division I, 39 in Division II and 63 in Division III. The NCAA Woman of the Year program has recognized graduating female college athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership since its inception in 1991.
Nina Predanic and Laura van der Doorn will both represent the NE10 in 2020 after outstanding campaigns in their respective sport. Predanic was the 2019 NE10 Player of the Year and finished her career as a women's soccer two-time First-Team All-American while leading the Golden Knights to a 21-3-1 record and into the NCAA National Semifinals.
Van der Doorn, meanwhile, was an NFHCA First-Team All-American, NE10 Player of the Year and East Region Player of the Year in 2019. She led her team to its first NE10 Title Game in field hockey and appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
This year marks just the third time in conference history that two female student-athletes from the NE10 were both selected as conference representatives. Last year the NE10's representative was Chelsea Abreu from the Adelphi women's lacrosse program. She was eventually chosen as one of three Division II finalists for the award and attended the awards ceremony in October 2019.
Conferences can recognize two nominees if at least one is a woman of color or international student-athlete. All nominees who compete in a sport not sponsored by their school's primary conference, as well as associate conference nominees and independent nominees, were placed in a separate pool to be considered by a selection committee. Four nominees from the pool were selected to move forward in the process with the conference nominees.
The Woman of the Year Selection Committee, made up of representatives from the NCAA membership, will now choose the Top 30 honorees — 10 from each division — from the conference-level nominees. The Top 30 honorees will be announced in September. From there, the selection committee will narrow the pool to three finalists from each division. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will select the 2020 Woman of the Year from the nine finalists this fall.
ABOUT THE NE10
Beginning its 40th anniversary season, the NE10 is an association of 14 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
