Former Emory Volleyball All-American Dani Huffman A Semifinalist For NCAA Woman Of The Year Award

Former Emory volleyball All-American Dani Huffman is one of 30 semifinalists for the 2009 NCAA Woman of the Year Award that will be presented in October.

The NCAA Woman of the Year Award honors senior women student-athletes who have excelled in the areas of academic achievement, athletics, service and leadership.

Huffman closed out her career in grand style in 2008, earning First Team All-America honors and guiding the Eagles' volleyball team to the program's first-ever NCAA Championship.  Tabbed as the Most Outstanding Player at the NCAA Championships, she was chosen to the All-UAA First Team for the second straight season. Huffman shined in the academic realm as well, becoming the third spiker in Emory history to earn the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Award.

A committee composed of representatives from NCAA member schools and conferences selected the top 30 honorees - 10 from each division - from a pool of 132 conference nominees, which included seven student-athletes from independent institutions, representing all three NCAA divisions and multiple sports.

The top 30 will be trimmed to nine finalists - three from each division - next month and the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will select the national winner from that pool of finalists. The recipient of the 19th annual award will be announced during the 2009 NCAA Woman of the Year awards dinner on October 18 in Indianapolis.

To learn more about the NCAA Woman of the Year Award, click here.