Alex Heishman Chosen as the OAC's NCAA Woman of the Year Nominee

7/25/2022 2:00:00 PM | By: Joe Ginley '16, SID

Alex Heishman is one of 59 conference nominees for the 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year.

WESTERVILLE – Following the conclusion of the 2021-22 academic year, Alex Heishman was selected as John Carroll University's 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year nominee.

Heishman's nomination has taken one major step forward. The recently graduated JCU Women's Lacrosse star has been chosen as the Ohio Athletic Conference's nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year.

Now, Heishman's nominations will be forwarded to the NCAA Woman of the Year Selection Committee, which will choose the top 10 honorees in each of the three NCAA divisions. The NCAA will announce the Top 30 honorees on NCAA.org in October.

"We are thrilled to hear that Alex has been selected to represent the OAC," said Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator Katie Hine. "Alex's leadership of the discussion of important mental health topics and initiatives was invaluable. Alex was a key leader on the field, but her servant leadership off the field was even more impressive. We're grateful for all of Alex's work, and we're rooting for her as she moves on to the next round of the process."

Across the NCAA, 577 women were nominated for this national award. From there, conference offices reviewed all nominations and chose representatives, narrowing down the field to 151 nominees. The Ohio Athletic Conference selected Heishman as the OAC's representative. Heishman is amongst 59 Division III student-athletes to be selected by conference offices.

Of the 151 nominations from conference offices, 17 sports are represented, with 42 student-athletes competing in multiple sports. The average GPA of this year's nominee pool is 3.8. After the Top 30 honorees (10 per division) are announced in October, the selection committee determines the top three finalists in each division. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will select the Woman of the Year from the nine finalists. The 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced during an award ceremony at the NCAA Convention in January.

Heishman enjoyed a memorable career on the field for John Carroll Women's Lacrosse. During Heishman's time at JCU, the Blue Streaks made two appearances in the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament Championship. JCU won the 2021 OAC Championship and made an appearance in last year's NCAA Tournament, both program firsts.

Statistically, Heishman tallied a team-best 46 goals and 67 assists on the year. Her offensive prowess secured her First Team All-OAC status, plus Second Team All-Region honors via the IWLCA.

More importantly, though, Heishman left an incredible off-field legacy. Not just a hard-working student, Heishman won the inaugural Roman-Canning Award for Student Athlete Community Service. She co-founded JCU's chapter of Morgan's Message with Lainey Donalson, looking to build awareness of mental health topics on campus. An Arrupe scholar, Heishman also participated in a wide variety of service activities.

Off the field, Heishman served the local community in a number of ways. During her four years at JCU, she volunteered at a local middle school, intergenerational community, and Walk to End Alzheimer's. Before her senior year, she founded JCU's chapter of Morgan's Message. Heishman helped to organize a Morgan's Message game, which featured activities before, during, and after the game to put a spotlight on mental health and the importance of taking care of yourself and others.

The NCAA's Woman of the Year award is in its 32nd year, honoring "academic achievements, athletics excellence, community service and leadership of outstanding female college athletes. Rooted in Title IX and directed by the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics, the NCAA Woman of the Year program celebrates the accomplishments of female college athletes across all three NCAA divisions." JCU last notched an NCAA Woman of the Year OAC nominee in 2019, when Lauren O'Malley was the OAC's selection.

Print Friendly Version

Related Videos

Related Stories

Sponsors