Women's Track & Field | 7/23/2015 9:24:00 AM

Indianapolis, Ind.----Wingate University senior track and field student-athlete Christina Matheny ('15, Akron, Ohio) is the South Atlantic Conference's nominee for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, league and NCAA officials announce Thursday. A record 147 NCAA female student-athletes are 2015 Woman of the Year honorees as named by conferences and independent schools (complete list).
 
"Christina has represented us so well academically, athletically and through her involvement in so many areas on our campus," Wingate associate athletic director Michelle Caddigan says. "Her passion for each of these areas is evident in her daily actions and, through her dedication, she has made a positive impact on our institution and athletic department. She is a fantastic example of what it means to be a Division II student-athlete. We are so proud to have her represent Wingate University and the South Atlantic Conference as a 2015 Woman of the Year honoree."
 
Wingate's first women's track and field All-American, Matheny earned second team indoor honors this winter. She tied her personal-best outdoor leap (1.73 meters) on the way to first team outdoor All-American laurels in May. A four-time All-Region performer in the high jump, Matheny was the USTFCCCA Southeast Region Field Athlete of the Year during the 2015 NCAA indoor and outdoor seasons.
 
Matheny is a two-time South Atlantic Conference high jump champion. The four-time Wingate Field Performer of the Year earned a bronze medal in the 2015 SAC long jump competition. She holds Wingate's school high jump and heptathlon records. Matheny is a two-time Capital One Academic All-District III women's track & field/cross country team member.
 
Matheny's campus and community involvement summary fills many volumes. She has served as president and Make-A-Wish chair for Wingate's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). Thanks to the leadership provided by Matheny and the WU SAAC, Wingate Athletics raised more than $8000 for Make-A-Wish during her junior and senior years. She was an intern at the United Way of Central Carolinas in 2014.
 
A group leader for a March 2014 Wingate Alternative Spring Break (ASB) trip, Matheny took a group of students and University employees to build a house in Marianna, Fla. She also participated in ASB trips to Florida and Alabama, respectively, during her freshman and sophomore years. She served as an admissions tour guide, a campus safety student worker, a note taker for the disabled and a peer mentor as well.
 
Matheny graduated magna cum laude at the University's Commencement Exercises Saturday, May 16. She has a 3.72 GPA with her Human Services major. She earned the Arthur Joseph "Pepper" Geddings, Jr. Award for best overall student-athlete at Wingate's 2015 WUSPYS athletic awards celebration. In addition, she received the Wingate Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Leadership Award.
 
NCAA WOMAN OF THE YEAR FUN FACTS

Selected from a record 480 school nominees, the 147 honorees represent college athletes from 18 different sports spanning all three NCAA divisions. Of those recognized, 57 honorees competed in Division I, 39 competed in Division II and 51 competed in Division III.
 
The Woman of the Year award honors graduating female college athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in academics, athletics, service and leadership. Of the nominees, 207 competed in Division I, 93 competed in Division II and 180 competed in Division III athletics.
 
The Woman of the Year selection committee will next select the top 10 honorees in each division. These top 30 honorees will be announced in early September.  The selection committee will then choose and announce the top nine finalists (three from each division) at the end of September. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will vote from amongst those nine finalists to determine the 2015 Woman of the Year.
 
The top 30 honorees will be honored and the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year will be named at the annual ceremony in Indianapolis on Oct. 18.
 
Now in its 25th year, the NCAA Woman of the Year award recognizes graduating female student-athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Wingate University, consistently ranked as a top 10 "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,000 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, master's degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport management and doctorates in pharmacy, physical therapy and education.
 
With a 15 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity. 
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past nine years. For more information, go to www.wingate.edu.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing colleges in the 2000's with 77 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate's 77 Academic All-America® honorees are number one during this millennium. Wingate's 86 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.