SUNY Oneonta 2019 Graduate Nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year

2019 SUNY Oneonta graduate Madeline Frank is among a record 585 female college athletes that have been nominated by NCAA member schools for the prestigious NCAA Woman of the Year award. The nominees include student athletes in 23 different sports across all three NCAA divisions, including 262 from Division I, 131 from Division II and 192 from Division III. Multisport student-athletes account for 144 of the nominees.

Established in 1991, the NCAA Woman of the Year award recognizes graduating female college athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves in academics, athletics, service and leadership throughout their collegiate careers.

Frank closed out an outstanding collegiate career as both a student and an athlete recognized during the spring semester for her performance on the basketball court, in the classroom and to the campus community and the greater Oneonta region.

Frank was the recipient of a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, one of only four students from Oneonta to be so honored. She earned selection to the Google Cloud Academic All-District 3 first team for basketball as chosen by CoSIDA. At the conclusion of the basketball season, Frank was selected as the SUNYAC Scholar Athlete of the Year for women’s basketball.

Frank was selected to the All-Conference Third Team for a second consecutive year this winter. She led the team in rebounding collecting 218 boards and was second on the team in points with 249 for an average of 9.6 points per contest. She recorded five double-doubles with a high of 18 points versus Williams College on Nov. 17th and a high of 14 boards against Plattsburgh on Feb. 15th.

Frank finished her career with 785 points to go with her 776 rebounds. Her rebounds are the all-time record surpassing the old mark of 720 held by two players. She was a career 72 percent shooter from the free throw line and recorded 145 assists and 87 steals.

As a biology major, Frank earned numerous academic accolades including induction into Chi Alpha Sigma National College Athlete Honor Society and being the recipient of the Susan Sutton Smith Award in 2016-17. She was a Provost’s List student and was a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society.

On campus, Frank earned Silver Level status in the College’s Leadership Academy. She is a certified nursing assistant and EMT and was a member of the Oneonta Emergency Squad. Her concentration is Pre-Physician Assistant and she will be pursuing an advanced degree with the goal of becoming a Physician Assistant.

“I wouldn’t change one thing about my experience at Oneonta,” stated Frank. “From the cold cheese pizza at Tino’s to the sleepless nights spent studying of course, it is a very special place that will forever be in my heart. I have met so many amazing people and watched myself transform into someone with leadership abilities and a real sense of purpose. I was able to play the sport I love all four years under a coach who always believed in me.”

About the NCAA Woman of the Year Program:

The NCAA encourages member schools to honor their top graduating female student-athletes each year by submitting their names for consideration for the Woman of the Year award.

Next, conferences will select up to two nominees each from the pool of school nominees. Then, 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.

The selection committee will determine the top three honorees from each division from the Top 30 and announce the nine finalists in September. From those nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics then will choose the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year.

The Top 30 honorees will be celebrated and the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year will be named at the annual award ceremony Oct. 20 in Indianapolis.