Texas Lutheran's DeAnna Hernandez named SCAC Woman of the Year
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. -- In exclusive voting by the Senior Woman Administrators of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, DeAnna Hernandez of Texas Lutheran University and Abby Holland of Trinity University have been selected SCAC Co-Woman of the Year.
In addition to being recognized as SCAC Woman of the Year, both Hernandez and Holland have been nominated for the 30th annual NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
The NCAA Woman of the Year Award honors graduating student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, community service and leadership.
Hernandez becomes TLU's second SCAC Woman of the Year honoree since the institution joined the conference prior to the 2013-14 academic year. Amanda Lochte, another TLU Softball standout, won the award in 2017.
A senior outfielder from Sugar Land, Texas, Hernandez graduated from TLU in May with a 4.00 grade point average as a biochemistry major.
Hernandez, the 2019-20 TLU Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, was a four-year letter-winner for the NCAA Division III national champion Bulldogs. She also claimed TLU's Junior-Year Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award in 2019.
She was named the 2019 Elite 90 Award Winner for NCAA Division III Softball at the national championship finals banquet. The Elite 90 award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade point average at each national championship. In 2020, Hernandez was named the SCAC's Elite 19 Award Winner for Softball.
Hernandez and the Bulldogs were 19-1 and ranked second in the DIII when the 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A 2019 SCAC First Team All-Conference selection, Hernandez was a career .340 hitter with a career on-base percentage of .412. She had 37 stolen bases in 42 career attempts.
In the Bulldogs' national championship season, Hernandez hit .367, stole 17 bases, and scored 30 runs. She posted an on-base percentage of .451.
"DeAnna Hernandez is a tremendous example of what TLU Athletics is all about," said Texas Lutheran Athletic Director Bill Miller. "She is an outstanding student and a great player. She is the epitome of a winner. TLU and the TLU Athletics Department are very proud of DeAnna and what she has accomplished. National championships are won with players like her on the team."
"DeAnna has been a selfless teammate the past four years," said TLU Head Softball Coach Wade Wilson. "She had an incredible career both on the field and in the classroom."
Away from the softball diamond, Hernandez was a four-time member of the SCAC Spring Academic Honor Roll, and she made the TLU President's List in all eight of her collegiate semesters.
"I will forever be thankful for the opportunities TLU has given me," said Hernandez. "To the coaches who have pushed me to be better, to the teammates who have become my family, and to the professors who allowed me to succeed, you will always be a part of me, and for that I thank you."
Holland is the third consecutive student-athlete from Trinity to earn SCAC Woman-of-the-Year honors, following Britney Sullivan in 2018 and Molly McCullough in 2019, and the eighth overall.
A four-time SCAC Academic Honor Roll selection, Holland, who hails from Georgetown, Texas, graduated in May with a 3.82 GPA in Communications. In early May, she received the highly competitive $10,000 NCAA Jim McKay Scholarship - an award presented to student-athletes who demonstrate achievement in sports communication or public relations - and a week later was awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
A decorated basketball player, Holland earned two All-America accolades this past season. She was elected to the D3hoops.com All-America Third Team and to the Women's Basketball Coaches Association NCAA Division III All-America Honorable Mention Team. Holland was tabbed as the SCAC Women's Basketball Player of the Year, as well as earning a slot on the All-SCAC First Team for the third season in a row.
Holland became Trinity's second-leading all-time women's basketball scorer last season with 1,690 career points - good for eighth all-time in SCAC history.
She led the Tigers in scoring with 18.7 points per matchup last season (524 total), while rebounding 6.6 boards (186 total) per game. She also made 52.1% of her shots and was ranked seventh in the NCAA Division III field goals made with 219.0 total.
"It has been amazing to watch Abby's development over the past four years as a Trinity women's basketball player," said Trinity University Athletic Director Bob King. "I have enjoyed opportunities to work with Abby on various meetings and in her role with the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, and she is a shining example of what it truly means to be a Tiger student-athlete."
"It is always special when you see people appropriately recognized for the impact they have made," said Trinity Head Women's Basketball Coach Cameron Hill. "I will never get tired of talking about Abby Holland's greatness, much in the way she never got tired of giving her absolute best to our University and Our Together Tigers! To call her the standard would set an unreachable bar, she is truly a one percenter."
Off the court, Holland was the women's basketball team representative to Trinity's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee both her junior and senior seasons. She was also a Trinity University YoungLife and a STRAPS Sports Volunteer for the entirety of her college career.
"Winning this award is so meaningful because while it highlights my hard work, nothing worthwhile is achieved without group effort and sacrifice," said Holland. "I am grateful for my four years at Trinity and in the SCAC because of the people I was surrounded with each day. They believed in me and pushed me to be my best. Thank you to everyone that was a part of achieving this success! I will always cherish being a together Tiger."
Hernandez and Holland were two of seven outstanding nominees considered by the SCAC Woman of the Year Committee. The other candidates were:
Ann Savage, Basketball, Austin College
Kyra Montes, Soccer, Centenary College
Riley Wadehra, Swimming and Diving, Colorado College
Hannah Ortiz, Softball, Schreiner University
Mary Cardone, Soccer & Tennis, Southwestern University
As SCAC co-winners, Hernandez and Holland will both be nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, one of the most prestigious honors the NCAA bestows. The award recognizes senior student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership.
All conference nominees will be forwarded to the NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee. The selection committee will choose the top 10 nominees in each division. From among those 30 honorees, the selection committee will determine the top three in each division. From the nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then selects the NCAA Woman of the Year, who will be named this fall.
In conjunction with the changes in the nomination process for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Woman of the Year award was established for the 2005-06 athletic season. Beginning in 2006, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics (CWA) started receiving conference-designated nominees in lieu of the previous institution- and state-based nomination format.
From 1991 to 2005, each state had a woman of the year honoree and from that group 10 finalists were selected. From the top-10 finalists, the national winner was then chosen. Since 2006, each conference and independent school forwards nominations to the NCAA.
To read about past winners of the SCAC Woman-of-the-Year award, click here.
Year-by-year SCAC Woman of the Year Honorees:
2020 - DeAnna Hernandez, softball, Texas Lutheran University / Abby Holland, basketball, Trinity University
2019 - Molly McCullough, cross country & outdoor track and field, Trinity University
2018 - Britney Sullivan, outdoor track and field, Trinity University
2017 - Amanda Lochte, softball, Texas Lutheran University
2016 - Brigette Lee, golf, Trinity University
2015 - Emily Jorgens, soccer, Trinity University
2014 - Lilly Duarte, cross country & outdoor track and field, Southwestern University / Shelby Eaves, volleyball, Austin College
2013 - Rachel Thibodeau, volleyball, Southwestern University
2012 - Sharwil Bell, basketball, Rhodes College / Abigail Loar, soccer, Trinity University
2011 - Hayley Emerick, swimming and diving, Trinity University
2010 - Lauren Reich, cross country/outdoor track and field, DePauw University
2009 - Melanie Auguste, basketball, Colorado College / Amanda Stier, swimming and diving, DePauw University
2008 - Katie Doogan, swimming and diving, DePauw University
2007 - Liz Bondi, basketball & tennis, DePauw University
2006 - Christyn Schumann, outdoor track and field, Trinity University