HAVERFORD, Pa. – Zoe Wong '18 has been announced as a nominee for the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year. Wong, a recent graduate and team captain of the volleyball team, is one of a record-breaking 581 female student-athletes who were nominated across the country. Of those record number of entrants, 199 of those student-athletes come from Division III schools.
Now in its 28th year, 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.
Coming into Haverford as a setter, Wong helped guide the Fords to first place in the Centennial Conference regular season standings as Haverford subsequently earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, advancing to the regional semifinals. The volleyball team went on to qualify for the Centennial Conference Tournament during three of her four seasons, playing in the conference championship match during the 2015 season.
Taking over as the primary setter after sharing those duties in her first two seasons, Wong graduates from Haverford ranked fourth all-time with 3,010 assists, averaging 6.81 helpers per set over her four years. She capped her career with a team-leading 973 assists this fall on her way to garnering first-team All-Centennial Conference honors for the second straight season. She also ranks in the top 10 in school history in career serves (1,404), sets played (442), and attack percentage (.273). She tallied 134 service aces during her career, including a career-best 51 during the team's trip to the Centennial Conference Championship match in 2015.
Her versatile play on the court as a senior saw Wong rank in the top five on Haverford in kills, blocks, and digs in addition to her primary setting responsibilities. Throughout her career, Wong was named to four all-tournament teams, earning that recognition during each of the past two seasons at Haverford's season-opening invitational.
Also a standout in the classroom, the biology major and fine arts minor was named one of 16 Ambler Scholar-Athletes at Haverford, presented to the top 16 senior student-athletes based on cumulative GPA. Wong was named to the Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll during each of her eligible seasons and earned a place on the Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area team this fall for her combination of academic and athletic success.
Also very involved in community service, Wong was one of several student-athletes who participated in Villanova's Special Olympics Day during the fall semester and headed up the social media efforts for the athletic department's annual Joe Schwartz '83 5K Run/Walk. On top of those commitments, Wong was also recognized by the National Strength and Condition Association (NSCA) as a 2018 All-American Athlete for her athletic achievement and dedication to the strength and condition program at an institution.
The NCAA encourages member schools to honor their top graduating female student-athletes each year by submitting their names for consideration for the Woman of the Year award. Then, conferences assess each nominee's eligibility and select up to two conference nominees. All conference nominees are forwarded to the Woman of the Year selection committee, which chooses the top 30 honorees – 10 from each division.
From the top 30, the selection committee determines the top three nominees from each division and announces the top nine finalists in September. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then chooses from among those nine to determine the 2017 NCAA Woman of the Year.