Madison, Wis. – August 2, 2018 – Former University of Wisconsin-La Crosse gymnast Amy Enright (Lake Elmo, Minn.) has been named the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) nominee for the 2018 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Woman of the Year Award, the league office announced Tuesday.
Now in its 28th year, the NCAA 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. NCAA member colleges and universities nominated 581 student-athletes, the most ever in the history of the program. Of the 581 nominees, 251 competed in NCAA Division I, 131 competed in Division II and 199 competed in Division III athletics.
To be eligible, a nominee must have competed and earned a varsity letter in an NCAA-sponsored sport, must have completed eligibility in her primary sport, and must have earned her undergraduate degree by summer 2018.
Conferences assess each nominee’s eligibility and select up to two conference nominees. All conference and independent/associate member nominees are forwarded to the Woman of the Year selection committee. The selection committee will choose the top 10 honorees in each division. From among those 30 candidates, the selection committee will determine the top three in each division. Finally, the members of the Committee on Women’s Athletics will vote from among the top nine finalists to determine the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year.
All school and conference honorees receive an NCAA certificate and will be recognized on ncaa.org. The top 10 honorees from Divisions I, II and III, including the nine overall finalists, will be honored, and the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year winner announced, at a dinner October 28 at the Westin Indianapolis.
A microbiology major with minors in chemistry and Spanish, Enright graduated with a 3.98 grade point average. She was selected to the 2017-18 Google Cloud National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Academic All-America® At-Large First Team, as voted by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Enright earned 2017-18 Google Cloud NCAA III All-District® Six At-Large Team honors. It marked Enright’s third career Academic All-America® At-Large honor after being named to the 2016-17 Academic All-America® NCAA Division III At-Large First Team and to the 2015-16 Academic All-America® At-Large Third Team, as selected by CoSIDA.
She has earned a spot on the National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches/Women All-Academic Team the last three seasons and is a four-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll. Enright was named to the 2017-18 National Collegiate Gymnastics Association (NCGA) Scholar All-America Team. She has appeared on UW-La Crosse’s Dean’s List numerous semesters and received many academic scholarships.
She earned 2018 NCGA All-America honors with a second-place finish on the uneven parallel bars. It was her fifth career NCGA All-America honor, including her fourth on the uneven parallel bars. She won the national title in 2015 while finishing fourth in 2016 and tied for seventh in 2017. Enright was third in the all-around in 2015. Her score of 9.825 in this year’s championships is tied for second in school history. Enright registered a school record score of 9.850 on the uneven parallel bars at the 2015 WIAC/NCGA West Regional Championships. She was a member of UW-La Crosse NCGA championship squads in 2015 and 2016.
Selected the 2017-18 WIAC Judy Kruckman Women’s Gymnastics Scholar-Athlete, Enright placed fourth on the uneven parallel bars and tied for 11th on the floor exercise at the 2018 league championships in helping lead the Eagles to the team title. A three-year team captain, Enright is a two-time WIAC champion on the uneven parallel bars, posting first-place finishes in 2015 and 2016, and helped UW-La Crosse win the conference title in 2016.
Enright is a member of UW-La Crosse’s Microbiology Club and Eta Phi Alpha Honor Society. She has participated in a number of campus and community organizations and activities including: Gundersen Medical Foundation Steppin’ Out In Pink Walk; Big Brothers/Big Sisters; Kids Night Out; Veteran’s Day Breakfast; Move-In Day; Battle-2-Battle Boot Camp; note taker for the UW-La Crosse ACCESS Center to provide detailed notes for classmates with disabilities; and Eagle Topper Program to provide job training opportunities to students with disabilities. Enright has served as a water quality research intern with the U.S. Geological Survey and Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center.
Enright was chosen from a conference field that also included Brianna Witter of UW-Oshkosh, Allison Jensen of UW-Platteville, Lydia Meier of UW-Stout and Michaela Matthys of UW-Whitewater.
Press Release Courtesy of University of Wisconsin – LaCrosse Athletic Communications.