Volleyball | 6/21/2016 11:41:00 AM

2016 NCAA Woman of the Year Nominees

Indianapolis, Ind.----2016 Wingate University graduate Shelly Stumpff (Iowa City, Iowa) has been named an NCAA Woman of the Year nominee, officials announced Tuesday afternoon. The SAC Player of the Year and Academic All-America selection is one of 517 nominees from NCAA Division I, II and 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 517 honorees, 231 competed in Division I, 117 competed in Division II and 169 competed in Division III athletics.

"When seeing Shelly listed as one of the nominees for this prestigious award, I had several thoughts," head coach Shelton Collier says. "First, to see her name and Wingate University listed alongside so many other nationally prominent, elite players from top schools around the country was very special. Second, Shelly is a player who evolved and grew so much as a person and as a leader over her four years here, so it is especially rewarding that she has been nominated for this honor."

Stumpff piled up the awards throughout her Wingate career, starting in 2012 when she was named the SAC and Region Freshman of the Year. She capped her four years by earning league Player of the Year honors in 2015, while also earning All-Region honors and honorable mention All-American accolades from the AVCA. The three-time all-conference selection also earned All-Region recognition three times.

Stumpff led SAC with 3.94 kills and 0.60 aces per set in 2015, ranking sixth nationally in aces. She was also the league-leader in points, ranking 17th in the nation with 4.8 points per set. Stumpff finished second on the team with 3.16 digs per set while ranking sixth in the conference with a .288 hitting percentage.

Stumpff was named a third team Academic All-America selection as a senior. She graduated with a 3.617 GPA, majoring in Math and Education. She has been a member of the Dean's List and President's list during her four years at Wingate, while also earning SAC Honor Roll honors all four years. A team captain of the 10-time defending SAC champion Bulldogs, Stumpff has over 80 hours of classroom experience, helping students work with math. She also participated in Trunk or Treat at Forest Hills High School in 2013. Stumpff and the Bulldogs also participated in service events during the NCAA Elite Eight in 2013 and 2014.

Stumpff finished her illustrious career as Wingate's all-time leader with 219 aces. She ranks third in program history with 1,405 kills, adding 1,216 digs. She averaged 3.1 kills per set in her career. Stumpff is one of only three Bulldogs with at least 1400 career kills. She ranks third in school history in kills per set, while her 449 kills in 2015 ranks sixth in single-season history. Stumpff led Wingate in kills three of her four seasons, helping the Bulldogs pile up four regular season SAC titles, three conference tournament championships and three NCAA Southeast Regional titles.

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 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 2016 Woman of the Year.

WINGATE UNIVERSITY
  
Wingate University, consistently ranked as a top 10 "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,100 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 34 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 10 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 85 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate is number one in this millennium with 85 Academic All-America® honorees. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 94 lifetime Academic All-America® picks. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.