By ISU Sports Information
INDIANAPOLIS – Illinois State senior Ashley Rosch has been named the Missouri Valley Conference’s nominee for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award, the NCAA announced Wednesday.
Initially one of 231 Division I student-athletes nominated for the award, Rosch is now one of just 54 conference nominees eligible to claim the honor.
Rosch is now one of just 54 candidates for the award from the Division I level. The former Illinois State volleyball standout was one of 231 Division I student-athletes nominated for the award.
The NCAA Woman of the Year award honors graduating female student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership.
From the 141 conference selections from all three NCAA divisions, the NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee will pick the top 10 candidates at each level, and will later narrow those to three from each division. Finally, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics will vote on the top nine finalists to select the 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year.
A native of Fox River Grove, Illinois, Rosch finished her collegiate career as the first four-time All-MVC First-Team selection in program history, and just the fifth overall in league annals. She was twice named the Valley’s Offensive Player of the Week in 2015. She set new career highs in points (31.5 versus Rutgers on Sept. 5) and kills (27 against Jacksonville on Sept. 19) in 2015, while also climbing Illinois State’s career record lists. Rosch finished her career holding Illinois State’s career record for attempts (4,914), while ranking third in kills (1,609), fourth in points (1,821.0) and seventh in digs (1,272).
Rosch was named to the MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team for the third year in a row in 2015 and was a nominee for the Senior CLASS Award. A three-time recipient of the MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award, Rosch has been named to the AFNI and MVC academic honor rolls every possible year and semester. She was named the MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Week on Sept. 9. Also active in community service and campus activities, Rosch served as Illinois State’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council representative to the MVC in 2014-15.
In the classroom, Rosch owns a 3.85 cumulative grade-point average (GPA) as an environmental health major.
