NCAA RELEASE

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois volleyball's Ali Bastianelli has been nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, the organization announced on Wednesday (June 26).  

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.

Bastianelli is one of a record 585 female college athletes that have been nominated by NCAA member schools for the 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year award. The nominees competed 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.

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.

Bastianelli's accolades on the court are nearly endless, with the senior being named the 2019 Big Ten Medal of Honor recipient for Illinois. A three-time All-American, All-Region and All-Big Ten honoree, Bastianelli finished her stellar Illini career as the Big Ten's all-time leader in block assists and ranked second in conference history in total blocks, both Illinois program records. She started 135 matches in her UI career, totaling 750 blocks to become the first Illini and third-ever Big Ten player to reach 700 career blocks. She also added 925 kills on a .335 hitting percentage, 114 digs and 46 service aces. In 2018, she helped lead the Fighting Illini national semifinals while earning Champaign Regional All-Tournament Team honors.

Off the court, Bastianelli shows her character in every aspect of her life, whether it is in the classroom, serving in the community or by leading on the court while setting an example for underclassmen to emulate. She was a 2018 Senior CLASS Award finalist and a three-time Student-Athlete Advisory Committee rep helping to organize the charity fundraiser Jock Jams event and assembling food baskets for families around Thanksgiving. She also was volunteer at many events including Walk to School Day, Family Fun Night, reading programs, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Cunningham Children's Home and more.

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