Nail, Wayne Earn NCAA Woman of the Year Nominations
By CSU Sports Information
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Columbus State University student-athletes Brooke Nail and Tatiana Wayne were announced as nominees for the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year award.
Established in 1991, the NCAA Woman of the Year award recognizes graduating female college athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves in academics, athletics, service, and leadership throughout their collegiate careers.
In 2019, a record 585 female college athletes were nominated for the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year award.
The top 30 honorees will be celebrated and the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year will be named at the annual award ceremony Oct. 20 in Indianapolis.
The 2019 Peach Belt Conference Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Nail graduated cum laude with a degree in political science this spring. A four-year starter for the CSU women's soccer team, Nail helped the Lady Cougars amass a 77-11-3 overall record, two appearances in the NCAA Tournament Final Four, and four PBC regular season championships. Also, CSU captured three PBC Tournament titles in her four seasons.
Off the field, Nail was quite active in the Columbus State community. She served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee as well as being the treasurer for the FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes). During her career, she was named to the PBC All-Academic team and PBC Presidential Honor Roll in all three seasons in which she was eligible and also traveled to England to take part in the Oxford University Study Aboard program with the Lady Cougar team this past spring.
A two-sport standout, Wayne was named the 2018 Southeast Region Player of the Year after one of the finest seasons in Lady Cougar basketball history. In addition to her basketball abilities, Wayne was a sprinter on the CSU track and field team. At the 2017 PBC Championships, Wayne was a member of the 4x400-meter relay team that finished second to earn all-conference accolades.
While Wayne was a member of the basketball team, CSU won two PBC regular season and tournament titles as well as reaching the 2017 NCAA Division II Elite Eight.
Off the court, Wayne was a member of CSU's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and Delta Sigma Theta. She was named to the PBC Presidential Honor Roll in three seasons and did countless hours of community service, including volunteering at the Ronald McDonald House, Feeding the Valley Food Bank, and Paws Humane Society.
Next up in the process, conferences will select up to two nominees each from the pool of school nominees. Then, the Woman of the Year selection committee, made up of representatives from the NCAA membership, will choose the top 30 honorees — 10 from each division.
The selection committee will determine the top three honorees in each division from the Top 30 and announce the nine finalists in September. From those nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then will choose the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year.