Sept. 10, 2008

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Western Washington University graduate Courtney Schneider is among the 130 conference and independent nominees announced by the NCAA today for the 18th annual NCAA Woman of the Year award.

The honor recognizes outstanding female student-athletes who have excelled academically and athletically in addition to demonstrating strong community service and leadership.

Nominees represent all three divisions.

The top 10 honorees in each division will be announced later this month followed by the selection of the top three honorees per division. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will choose the winner from the top nine honorees, and the 2008 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced at an awards dinner in Indianapolis on October 19.

To be eligible for this award, the female student-athlete must have earned a varsity letter in an NCAA-sponsored sport and competed during the 2007-08 academic year. In addition, each individual must have completed intercollegiate eligibility in her primary sport by the end of the 2008 spring season and must have a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.5.

Schneider (Snohomish, WA) led Western to an historic volleyball season last fall as the Vikings posted a 26-5 record and reached the NCAA Division II national championship match, winning the school's first Pacific Regional title and taking the Great Northwest Athletic Conference crown.

Schneider completed her career as one of the top defensive players in NCAA II history. She set NCAA single season (7.74) and career (7.00) records for most digs per game and finished third in NCAA history in career digs with 2,695.

She also earned GNAC Player-of-the-Year honors and was a first-team American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American selection.

In all, Schneider won a total of six All-American awards in her career, including three by the AVCA (first team in 2007, third team in 2006 and honorable mention in 2005) and three by Daktronics (first team in 2006, second team in 2007 and third team in 2005). The Daktronics team is chosen by the nation's sports information directors.

In the classroom, the Community Health major was a three-time GNAC academic all-star and a two-time West Region all-star, graduating with a 3.62 grade point average.

During her career at WWU, Schneider was also active as a program development volunteer with the Whatcom Family YMCA, as an assistant teacher with Gold Creek pre-school and as a Sunday school volunteer with the Gold Creek Community Church.

This year's conference and independent nominees are:

America East Conference Dana Hastie Stony Brook University (Division I) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

America East Conference Sarah Hudak Boston University (Division I) Field Hockey

American Southwest Conference Michelle Heckmann Concordia University (Texas) (Division III) Volleyball

American Southwest Conference Tarra Richardson McMurry University (Division III) Basketball

Atlantic 10 Conference Sarah-Jo Lawrence George Washington University (Division I) Basketball

Atlantic 10 Conference Lindsey Ozimek University of North Carolina, Charlotte (Division I) Soccer

Atlantic Coast Conference Kandia Batchelor Florida State University (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Atlantic Coast Conference Jessica Botzum Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University (Division I) Swimming and Diving

Atlantic Sun Conference Volha Batsula East Tennessee State University (Division I) Tennis

Big 12 Conference Sarah Pavan University of Nebraska, Lincoln (Division I) Volleyball

Big 12 Conference Sally Kipyego Texas Tech University (Division I) Outdoor Track and Field

Big East Conference Allie Quigley DePaul University (Division I) Basketball

Big East Conference Jillian Drouin Syracuse University (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Big Ten Conference Molly Crispell Pennsylvania State University (Division I) Swimming and Diving

Big Sky Conference Laura Cote University of Montana (Division I) Basketball

Big South Conference Stephanie Reid Winthrop University (Division I) Softball

Big South Conference Allyson Fasnacht Liberty University (Division I) Basketball

Big West Conference Bethany Nickless University of California, Santa Barbara (Division I) Cross Country and Outdoor Track and Field

California Collegiate Athletic Association Katherine Bagwell California State University, Chico (Division II) Soccer, and Outdoor Track and Field

Capital Athletic Conference Inc Susan Ackermann Salisbury University (Division III) Lacrosse

Centennial Conference Emily Hinchcliff Haverford College (Division III) Volleyball

Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Heather Walker Georgian Court University (Division II) Softball and Volleyball

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Kim Moore Shaw University (Division II) Tennis and Volleyball

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Celeste Trahan Elizabeth City State University (Division II) Basketball

College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Sarah Richardson Wheaton College (Illinois) (Division III) Soccer

College Hockey America Ashley King Wayne State University (Michigan) (Division II) Ice Hockey

Colonial Athletic Association Megan Moulton-Levy College of William and Mary (Division I) Tennis

Colonial Athletic Association Colleen Walsh University of Delaware (Division I) Volleyball

Commonwealth Conference Erin Fisher Elizabethtown College (Division III) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

The Commonwealth Coast Conference Kacie Gallo Salve Regina University (Division III) Soccer, and Outdoor Track and Field

Conference Carolinas Samantha Mitchell Mount Olive College (Division II) Softball and Volleyball

Conference USA Marissa Daniels Rice University (Division I) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Conference USA Jami Tullius University of Texas at El Paso (Division I) Soccer

Division III Independents Holly Andrews Nebraska Wesleyan University (Division III) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

East Coast Conference Diana Redman Queens College (New York) (Division II) Soccer, and Indoor Track and Field

Empire 8 Natalia Chabebe Stevens Institute of Technology (Division III) Fencing

Empire 8 Emily Lesher Nazareth College (Division III) Swimming and Diving

Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Rachel Folcik Ferris State University (Division II) Basketball

Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Kirby Blackley University of Findlay (Division II) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Great Lakes Valley Conference Elizabeth Holmes Northern Kentucky University (Division II) Volleyball

Great Northeast Athletic Conference Jillian Leger Saint Joseph's College (Maine) (Division III) Soccer

Great Northwest Athletic Conference Courtney Schneider Western Washington University (Division II) Volleyball

Great Northwest Athletic Conference Jackie Thomas Seattle University (Division II) Basketball

Gulf South Conference Ashton Washington University of West Alabama (Division II) Basketball

Heartland Conference Kristen Gascoyne St. Edward's University (Division II) Soccer

Horizon League Jessica Weidert Wright State University (Division I) Swimming and Diving

Independent Jennifer Artichuk Delta State University (Division II) Swimming

Independent Dena Baskous New Jersey Institute of Technology (Division II) Soccer

Independent Courtney Arno-Templet Texas Woman's University (Division II) Gymnastics

Independent Sheralyn Briggs University at Buffalo, the State University of New (Division I) Rowing

Independent Aiesha Brown North Carolina Central University (Division II) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Independent Elizabeth Enyart U.S. Air Force Academy (Division I) Fencing

Independent Faith Greenawalt Tiffin University (Division II) Tennis

Independent Jennifer Hukill North Carolina Central University (Division II) Basketball

Independent Meghann Morrill University of Nevada, Reno (Division I) Rifle

Independent Ashley Postell University of Utah (Division I) Gymnastics

Iowa Intercol. Athletic Conf. Ashley Rogers Wartburg College (Division III) Softball and Volleyball

Ivy Group Jesse Carlin University of Pennsylvania (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Ivy Group Sarah Wu Brown University (Division I) Rowing

Landmark Conference Emily Blatter Goucher College (Division III) Lacrosse

Liberty League Nicole Tetreault Hamilton College (Division III) Lacrosse and Soccer

Little East Conference Christie Lotti Rhode Island College (Division III) Softball

Lone Star Conference Rachel Ingram Southwestern Oklahoma State University (Division II) Cross Country

Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference Colleen Feeney Bridgewater State College (Division III) Basketball

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Brittany Bisnott Niagara University (Division I) Soccer

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Jaclyn O'Leary Iona College (Division I) Lacrosse

Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Sarah Wittingen Calvin College (Division III) Outdoor Track and Field

Mid-American Conference Stephanie Swiger Bowling Green State University (Division I) Volleyball

Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Jill Johnson Missouri Western State University (Division II) Basketball

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Morgan Maxwell Howard University (Division I) Women's Volleyball

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Jessica Worsley University of Maryland, Eastern Shore (Division I) Bowling

Midwest Conference Ashley Yeast Monmouth College (Illinois) (Division III) Basketball and Volleyball

Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Maria Bye University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) (Division III) Softball

Missouri Valley Conference Sara Lungren Wichita State University (Division I) Volleyball

Mountain West Conference Chelsea Goodman Brigham Young University (Division I) Volleyball

Mountain West Conference Dionne Marsh University of New Mexico (Division I) Basketball

New England Small College Athletic Conference Grace Moore Bowdoin College (Division III) Lacrosse and Soccer

New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference Doria Holbrook Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Division III) Swimming and Diving

New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference Shanti Freitas Smith College (Division III) Swimming

North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Jill Smolczyk University of South Dakota (Division II) Swimming and Diving

North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Ashley Homan St. Cloud State University (Division II) Softball

North Atlantic Conference Rebecca Allen Maine Maritime Academy (Division III) Volleyball

North Coast Athletic Conference Erin Gorsich Denison University (Division III) Tennis

Northeast-10 Conference Alison Lesher Le Moyne College (Division II) Swimming and Diving

Northeast Conference Ann Marie Mangano Quinnipiac University (Division I) Field Hockey

Northern Athletics Conference Catherine Chappell Milwaukee School of Engineering (Division III) Basketball, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Kallie Tellefson Winona State University (Division II) Soccer

Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Kira Wannebo Northern State University (Division II) Soccer

Northwest Conference Sarah Zerzan Willamette University (Division III) Cross Country, and Outdoor Track and Field

Ohio Valley Conference Beth Boden Tennessee Technological University (Division I) Softball

Old Dominion Athletic Conference Amy Roberson Washington and Lee University (Division III) Swimming and Diving

Old Dominion Athletic Conference Kelly Gonzalez Guilford College (Division III) Lacrosse

Patriot League Denise Infante American University (Division I) Field Hockey

Pacific-10 Conference Arianna Lambie Stanford University (Division I) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Pacific West Conference Sheila Johnson Grand Canyon University (Division II) Tennis

Patriot League Christine Smith Lehigh University (Division I) Field Hockey and Lacrosse

Peach Belt Conference Amanda Gerolstein University of South Carolina Aiken (Division II) Volleyball

Peach Belt Conference Tiara Good Lander University (Division II) Basketball

The Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Ericka Morrison Misericordia University (Division III) Basketball

Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Brittany Pikur Indiana University of Pennsylvania (Division II) Lacrosse and Soccer

Presidents' Athletic Conference Halley Brus Chatham University (Division III) Softball, Soccer, and Swimming and Diving

Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Nicole Schwab Fort Lewis College (Division II) Volleyball

Skyline Conference Jennifer Martinez St. Joseph's College (Long Island) (Division III) Softball

South Atlantic Conference Heloisa de Oliveira Lincoln Memorial University (Division II) Soccer

South Atlantic Conference Melissa DeLuca Wingate University (Division II) Volleyball

Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conf. Natalie Calderon University of Redlands (Division III) Outdoor Track and Field

Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Katherine Doogan DePauw University (Division III) Swimming and Diving

Southern Conference Brenna Burns Davidson College (Division I) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Southern Conference Alex Anderson University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (Division I) Basketball

Southeastern Conference Nkolika Anosike University of Tennessee, Knoxville (Division I) Basketball

Southeastern Conference Stacy Lewis University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (Division I) Golf

Southwestern Athletic Conference Janna Moore-Calliste Texas Southern University (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Southwestern Athletic Conference Nyasha Chambwe Jackson State University (Division I) Basketball

St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Emily Forbes Eureka College (Division III) Softball and Volleyball

State University of New York Athletic Conference Michelle Coombs State University College at New Paltz (Division III) Swimming and Diving

The Summit League Lisa Bue North Dakota State University (Division II) Basketball

The Summit League Halee Clark Oral Roberts University (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Sun Belt Conference Rachael Runnels University of North Texas (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Sun Belt Conference Jenna Billingsley University of Denver (Division I) Soccer

Sunshine State Conference Virginia Davenport Saint Leo University (Division II) Soccer

Sunshine State Conference Alexandra Schunk Lynn University (Division II) Tennis

University Athletic Association Esther Erb Case Western Reserve University (Division III) Cross Country, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

USA South Athletic Conference Ashley Hay Christopher Newport University (Division III) Field Hockey

USA South Athletic Conference Jenee Johnson Greensboro College (Division III) Softball

Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Sarah Schettle University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh (Division III) Cross Country, Swimming and Diving, and Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

Western Athletic Conference Melinda Owen University of Idaho (Division I) Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field

West Coast Conference Jenna Shay Pepperdine University (Division I) Soccer

West Coast Conference Stephanie Cox (Lopez) University of Portland (Division I) Soccer

Western Collegiate Hockey Association Bobbi Ross University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (Division I) Ice Hockey

West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Amanda Lyons Wheeling Jesuit University (Division II) Soccer