10:33 am | August 6, 2019 | Go to Source | Author:
August 06, 2019
The Big 12 Conference has nominated Sofia Blanco (Oklahoma State tennis) and Anelise Diener (Texas swimming & diving) for 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year. Additionally, West Virginia rifle student-athlete Ginny Thrasher was selected as one of four independent nominees.
The NCAA Woman of the Year award recognizes graduating female student-athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership. A total of 148 female student-athletes have been named candidates by conferences and independent schools.
The selection committee will choose the top-10 honorees in each division. From those 30 candidates, the top three in each division will be determined. The Committee on Women’s Athletics will then select the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year with the winner announced at a ceremony on October 20 in Indianapolis. Former Texas Tech track and field student-athlete Ifeatu Okafor earned the prestigious honor in 2013.
Blanco, along with doubles partner Catherine Gulihur, advanced to the round of 16 in the NCAA Doubles Championship. The Cowgirls reached the semifinals of the Big 12 Championship and advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals, where OSU faced top-ranked North Carolina. Academically, Blanco was selected as the 2019 NCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Elite 90 Award winner. The Cordoba, Argentina, native held a 4.0 GPA in psychology. She was a three-time Academic All-Big 12 First Team honoree and was a two-time Google Cloud Academic All-American (first team in 2019 and third team in 2018). Blanco was named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s (ITA) Most Improved Senior for the Central Region.
Diener is a five-time Big 12 Champion, three-time All-American and three-time NCAA Championships qualifier. In 2019 NCAA Championships, the San Antonio, Texas, native placed 19th in the prelims of the 100 freestyle and tied for 26th in the 50 freestyle prelims. She teamed with Claire Adams, Julie Cook and Grace Ariola to place fourth in the 400-freestyle relay at the NCAA Championship. Diener was part of two Big 12 freestyle titles, winning the 200- and 400- freestyle relays. Additionally, the senior finished third in the 100 free and fourth in the 50 free and 200 free. Those performances by Diener helped the Longhorns clinch their 17th Big 12 title. Additionally, Diener is three-time Academic All-Big 12 First Team honoree.
Thrasher garnered multiple accolades to cap her accomplished career at West Virginia. The senior was named the Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) Shooter of the Year and was voted as the GARC’s Outstanding Senior. She won conference titles in the air rifle and smallbore before finishing fifth in the smallbore at the 2019 NCAA Championships. Thrasher was a 12-time All-American for the Mountaineers and garnered All-Conference honors in each of her four seasons. She guided WVU to two NCAA National Championships in 2016 and 2017 and a pair of runner-up finishes in 2018 and 2019. She won the first gold medal at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympic Games, winning the women’s 10m air rifle. The Springfield, Virginia, native was named a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship. She earned multiple academic awards including the Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award, WVU Order of Augusta and the WVU Outstanding Senior Award.
Powered by WPeMatico