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Angel Valdez
Michael Glasgow

Track & Field

Haynes, Valdez Nominated For 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year



BAKESFIELD, Calif. – Two CSU Bakersfield student-athletes, Sydney Haynes and Angel Valdez, have been selected as nominees for the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year award. Haynes and Valdez are two of 581 female college athletes nominated for the prestigious honor.
 
Established in 1991 and 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 in academics, athletics, service and leadership throughout their collegiate careers.
 
The school nominees represent all three NCAA divisions, with 251 from Division I, 131 from Division II and 199 from Division III. The nominees competed in 20 different women's sports and 170 were multisport athletes during their time in college.
 
Next conferences will select up to two nominees from the pool of conference members nominated. The Woman of the Year selection committee, made up of representatives from NCAA membership, will then choose the top 30 honorees – 10 from each division.
 
Haynes capped off her Roadrunner career by becoming the first student-athlete, in any sport, to help her program win two conference tournament titles and earn two bids to the NCAA Tournament since the school moved to Division I in 2007. She finished her career with the sixth-most block assists (265) and total blocks (289) in Division I program history. In 2017, Haynes posted the third-most total blocks (99) and fourth-most block assists (91) in a single-season. The 6-foot-2 middle blocker recorded a career-best 919 kills, 289 blocks, 217 digs and 51 aces. 
 
Off the court Haynes was equally as brilliant as she was named the Kinesiology Outstanding Undergraduate, earned WAC All-Academic six times, totaled 78 hours of community service across 11 organizations and co-authored a research project on body composition testing that is now in the publishing process. Haynes graduated magna cum laude with a B.S. in Kinesiology in 2017.
 
Valdez earned 10 WAC All-Academic honors throughout her career. She led her team in 15 consecutive cross country races, the most-ever in program history. She also owns the record in the 4k, 5k and 6k races. In track and field, Valdez ranks second in the 10,000-meter, third in the 5,000-meter, sixth in the 3,000-meter and 14th in the 1,500-meter. The 5-foot-3 distance runner holds the highest WAC and NCAA Regionals finish in Division I program history.
 
Off the track Valdez spent a significant amount of time doing community service, totaling 86 hours with seven different organizations during her collegiate career. She graduated magna cum laude with a B.S. in Mathematics and a concentration in teaching.
 
From the top 30, the selection committee determines the top three honorees from each division and announces the nine finalists in September. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then chooses the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year from those nine.
 
The top 30 honorees will be recognized and the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced at the annual award ceremony in Indianapolis.
~GoRunners.com~

 
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Players Mentioned

Angel Valdez

Angel Valdez

Distance
5' 3"
Senior
Sydney Haynes

#13 Sydney Haynes

6' 2"
Graduate Student

Players Mentioned

Angel Valdez

Angel Valdez

5' 3"
Senior
Distance
Sydney Haynes

#13 Sydney Haynes

6' 2"
Graduate Student
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