UPDATED August 1, 2016
INDIANAPOLIS—On July 27, the NCAA's member conferences announced 142 female student-athletes as their nominees for the 2016 Woman of the Year Award. Among them, Sarah Lawrence College student-athlete
Sarah Fiordaliso (Buffalo, N.Y./Sweet Home) was selected to represent the Skyline Conference as one of 51 Division III nominees to be considered for national recognition.
Fiordaliso joined Skyline student-athletes Rachel Mirsky of Yeshiva and Joann Murino of St. Joseph's-Long Island among the list of overall nominees. Fiordaliso was selected by the Skyline's Executive Committee as the league's nominee to advance in the award process.
The 142 remaining nominees were selected from a record 517 school nominees, representing college athletes from 17 different sports spanning all three NCAA divisions. Of those recognized, 54 nominees competed in Division I, 37 in Division II and 51 in Division III.
The Top 30 honorees will be celebrated and the 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year will be named at the annual banquet Oct. 16 in Indianapolis.
The NCAA Woman of the Year program has recognized graduating female student-athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership since its inception in 1991.
To view the list of conference nominees, click here.
Click here to read full Skyline Conference release.
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June 21, 2016
INDIANAPOLIS—Sarah Lawrence College student-athlete Sarah Fiordaliso (Buffalo, N.Y./Sweet Home) has been selected as a nominee for the 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year Award, as announced by the Association on Tuesday.
This year, 517 honorees were nominated by member schools across all three divisions, the most ever in the history of the Woman of the Year program. Fiordaliso is one of 169 nominees selected from roughly 450 Division III schools. The nominees included 231 from Division I and 117 from Division II.
Fiordaliso was a three-year member of the women's tennis program before graduating in May. She missed the 2014 season to study abroad. She has been involved in a multitude of community projects during her collegiate career, including tutoring at local schools, alternative spring break service trips, and four months volunteering in Africa.
In her personal statement for the award, Fiordaliso explained, "I studied human development and community-based participatory research while working with nonprofits in Tanzania, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. Working with these organizations to battle the regional orphan crisis, I found that my athletic experience transcended interpersonal boundaries."
On the court, Fiordaliso won a Hudson Valley Women's Athletic Conference championship in 2012, playing at No. 3 doubles. She advanced to the finals in both singles and doubles during the tournament in 2013. During the 2015 season, she and partner Lane Garber (Los Altos, Calif./Los Altos) amassed a 12-0 doubles record during the regular-season, helping the Gryphons to their first-ever Skyline Conference postseason berth. Fiordaliso is also a two-time conference academic honoree.
The Woman of the Year Award program was established in 1991, and this summer marks its 26th year.
Student-athletes are considered based on four primary criteria: academics, athletics, service and leadership. A student-athlete may only be nominated once in her career.
Fiordaliso is one of three nominees from the Skyline Conference. Each participating conference will select one or two nominees to advance for national consideration later this summer.
