Trinity's Sullivan Selected SCAC Woman of the Year

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. -- In exclusive voting by the senior woman administrators of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, Britney Sullivan of Trinity University has been selected the 2018 SCAC Woman of the Year.

In addition to being recognized as SCAC Woman of the Year, Sullivan will be nominated for the 28th 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.

"I am both humbled and honored to be this year’s recipient of the 2018 SCAC Woman of the year award," said Sulllivan. "This award is a symbol that with hard work, perseverance, and dedication one can excel well beyond their expectations. Throughout my time at Trinity, I was given many opportunities to serve my campus, my community, and my track and field team. These various leadership positions instilled in me a strong sense of servant leadership that I plan to carry with me well beyond my years at Trinity."

Sullivan, who graduated this past spring with a degree in Accounting, earned a slot on the SCAC Academic Honor Roll for the fourth consecutive year and was a three-time member of the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Team. She was a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, the Sigma Delta Pi National Honors Society, and earned distinction on the Trinity Dean’s List. Sullivan was the recipient of this year’s Trinity Senior Accounting Scholars Award.

On campus, Sullivan served on Trinity’s Academic Honor Council and the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Working with her Gamma Chi Delta Sorority, Sullivan was the coordinator of the annual Philanthropy Concert.

On the track, Sullivan qualified for the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships for the fourth straight year and achieved All-America distinction in the triple jump, while also competing in the long jump. She was an NCAA triple jump competitor at the 2016 and 2017 Indoor Championships. This past spring, Sullivan as tabbed the 2018 SCAC Women’s Field Athlete of the Year, an honor she previously achieved in 2016. At this season’s SCAC Track & Field Championships, Sullivan won the triple jump for the third time in four years. She was also part of the champion 4x100-meter relay team and was runner-up in the long jump, an event she won in 2015 and 2016. She attained All-SCAC honors eight times in her career.

"We are excited that Britney won the SCAC Woman of the Year award," said Trinity University head track and field coach Marcus Whitehead. "This is truly a well deserved award as Britney has been amazing on and off the track the last four years. She has really been a model student-athlete for Trinity and we will miss the leadership she brought to our program."

Sullivan was named the 2018 USTFCCCA South/Southeast Region Women’s Field Athlete of the Year. This year, she earned All-South/Southeast Region accolades in the triple jump, long jump, and 4x100-meter relay, and all told, Sullivan earned the All-Region distinction eight times in her career.

"Striving to give my all to each of these commitments did present some challenges, but overcoming those challenges showed me the importance of work, time and effort," said Sullivan. "As I reflect upon the importance of this award, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes: Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Sometimes we accomplish the goals we have worked so hard to achieve, and yet other times we might come up short of accomplishing said goals. But in the end, all of our efforts, failures and successes contribute to the greater purpose of our overall journey."

Sullivan's selection marks the sixth time a Trinity University student-athlete has earned SCAC Woman of the Year honors - the most of any instiution since the award was established prior to the 2005-06 athletics season. Other recipients from Trinity include Brigette Lee (2016), Emily Jorgens (2015), Abigail Loar (2012), Hayley Emerick (2011) and Christyn Schumann (2006).

Sullivan was one of five outstanding nominees considered by the SCAC Woman of the Year Committee. The other candidates were:

• Erin Eckart, women's soccer, Austin College
• Kate Mitchell, volleyball, Southwestern University
• Kyla Lockley, softball, Texas Lutheran University
• Lindsay Hagmann, women's swimming, Trinity University

As SCAC winner, Sullivan will 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. Finally, the members of the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics will vote from among the top nine finalists to determine the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year.

The top 10 honorees and the nine finalists from Divisions I, II and III will be honored and the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year winner will be recognized Oct. 28 at an awards dinner in Indianapolis.

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.