Austin American-Statesman

Eggleston nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year

- Thomas Jones

Texas graduate Logan Eggleston, who led the Longhorns’ volleyball team to the 2022 national championsh­ip, has been nominated by the Big 12 for the 2023 NCAA Woman of the Year award, the league office announced Tuesday.

The NCAA Woman of the Year program honors the academic achievemen­ts, athletics excellence, community service and leadership of graduating female athletes from all three divisions. To be eligible, nominees must have competed and earned a varsity letter in an NCAA-sponsored sport and must have completed eligibilit­y in their primary sport.

Eggleston, along with Oklahoma gymnast Olivia Trautman, were selected by the Big 12 senior woman administra­tors.

Eggleston capped her five-year college career by leading the Longhorns to their fourth national championsh­ip. She was named the 2022 NCAA championsh­ip most outstandin­g player as well as the American Volleyball Coaches Associatio­n’s national player of the year. Eggleston led the Longhorns with 407 kills and 4.28 kills per set last season and finished with a team-high 42 service aces while breaking the Big 12 career record with 208 aces.

During her UT career, she played in 141 matches and 493 sets. She had 1,921 career kills and hit .305. Eggleston also had 981 career digs and 293 blocks. The three-time Big 12 player of the year is the first-ever Texas volleyball player to earn both first-team All-America and firstteam Academic All-America honors in the same season. She led Texas to a 76-4 conference record and five straight Big 12 titles during her career while collecting five-straight Big 12 championsh­ips.

The four-time first-team academic all-Big 12 member graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administra­tion and management and is working toward a master’s degree in sport management at Texas.

Eggleston’s achievemen­ts on the court were matched by her accomplish­ments outside the gym. She served as president of the Texas Athletics Student-Athlete Advisory Committee for two years and helped create the DNA fund, a donation-based initiative that raised money for athletic equipment and sports opportunit­ies for underprivi­leged youth in the Austin area. She also helped found and played a key role with the LEAD Initiative, which allocates funds from Texas Athletics revenue to nonprofit organizati­ons doing positive work for diverse communitie­s.

The Woman of the Year Selection Committee, made up of representa­tives from the NCAA membership, will choose the top 30 honorees — 10 from each division — from the conference­level nominees. The 30 honorees will be announced in October. The selection committee then will determine the top three honorees in each division from the top 30, and the nine finalists will be announced in November.

From those nine finalists, the committee will choose its woman of the year. The honorees will be celebrated at the Woman of the Year Award Ceremony at the NCAA Convention in Phoenix in January.

 ?? SARA DIGGINS/AMERICAN-STATESMAN ?? Texas outside hitter Logan Eggleston, center, celebrates with teammates during the Longhorns’ win over Ohio State in the NCAA quarterfinals in December. Eggleston has been nominated by the Big 12 for the 2023 NCAA Woman of the Year award.
SARA DIGGINS/AMERICAN-STATESMAN Texas outside hitter Logan Eggleston, center, celebrates with teammates during the Longhorns’ win over Ohio State in the NCAA quarterfinals in December. Eggleston has been nominated by the Big 12 for the 2023 NCAA Woman of the Year award.

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