Washington athletes nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year award
MIKE MAYNARD | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 months AGO
The Wildcats’ Sunny Huerta celebrating during a prior game. Huerta set multiple records for Central Washington and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, including most points in school history and second most in conference history.
COURTESY PHOTO/NEVAEH CAPETILLO
Vikings athlete, Katie Potts, preparing for competition in a previous meet at Western Washington. Potts was a captain of the throwers unit and won 11 individual All-GNAC awards during her time there.
Annika Esvelt, a recent graduate from Seattle Pacific University, was one of eight nominees for the NCAA’s Woman of the Year award. Esvelt finished her collegiate career with five top 10 national finishes across three sports.
Saints thrower, Jocelyn Saribay, competing for Saint Martin’s. Saribay claimed the GNAC Indoor Championships gold medal in the weight throw with a toss of 52-9.25 feet (15.48 meters).
MOSES LAKE – On July 30, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference announced eight conference athletes were nominated for the NCAA’s Woman of the Year award. Four nominees are from Washington schools, according to a statement by GNAC. One nominee being Sunny Huerta from Central Washington.
“I'm so happy for Sunny to be nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year,” Central Washington head women’s basketball coach Randi Richardson said. “During her time here at (Central Washington University) she has worked incredibly hard in the classroom and on the court to achieve all that she has been able to achieve. She has always embodied all the qualities of someone wearing a Wildcat uniform we could ever want.”
According to the NCAA, the Woman of the Year program was established in 1991. It aims to honor the academic achievements, athletic excellence, community service and leadership of graduating female college athletes from all three divisions. Hundreds of athletes are nominated by their schools each year for the prestigious award, with conferences celebrating their top choice for the award.
CWU’s statement called Huerta's career with the Wildcats one for the ages. At the conclusion of her time with the team, she held several school and conference records.
She holds 26 single-season top 10 marks and 16 career top-10 records, including: Most points in CWU history and second-most in GNAC history (1,960), most made field goals also in GNAC history (714), highest career three-point percentage (42.5%), most games played (124), and most games started (116). Additionally, she holds the Great Northwest Athletic Conference record for most points scored in a single game (46 vs. Walla Walla on Dec. 21, 2022), a performance in which she also tied the CWU record for most field goals made in a game (18).
From Western Washington, Katie Potts was their nominee. Potts was a captain of the throwers' unit on the track and field team, according to a statement by WWU athletics. Potts was a six-year member of the WWU Track & Field program and was an 11-time All-GNAC performer at the conference indoor and outdoor championships.
“My experiences as a scholar, leader and athlete have shaped me into someone who values hard work, collaboration, and community. Whether in academics, athletics, or leadership, I am driven by the belief that there is more that unites us than separates us,” Potts said in the WWU statement. “I look forward to carrying these lessons into future opportunities, creating inclusive spaces where people feel supported and inspired to do their best and making a positive impact wherever I go.”
In competition, Potts won 11 individual All-GNAC awards spread across the indoor and outdoor seasons, highlighted by winning the discus competition three consecutive seasons from 2023 to 2025. She was part of five GNAC championship teams, winning three outdoor team titles and two at the indoor championships.
Her career began as a true freshman during the indoor season in 2020 and concluded with a 19th-place finish in the discus at the 2025 NCAA II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in May in Pueblo, Colorado. Throughout her journey at Western, Potts represented the Vikings in 73 meets, setting the school outdoor record in the discus with a top mark of 48.15m/157-11.
Annika Esvelt represented Seattle Pacific University as the nominee from the Cross Country/Track and Field program. According to GNAC’s statement, she put the finishing touches on a stellar cross country and track and field career. Esvelt finished with five top 10 national finishes across the three sports.
Esvelt kicked off her senior campaign by finishing fourth at the 2024 NCAA Cross Country Championships, before taking seventh in both the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters at the 2025 NCAA Indoor Championships.
She wrapped things up by placing seventh in the 10,000 meters and ninth in the 5,000 meters at the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships. The 2023-24 GNAC Female Scholar Athlete of the Year, Esvelt, was a four-time academic all-conference selection and was awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship at the end of May.
Representing Saint Martin’s is Jocelyn Saribay from the Track and Field program. Saribay made school history during the indoor season, claiming the GNAC Indoor Championships gold medal in the weight throw with a toss of 52-9.25 feet (15.48 meters), GNAC’s statement said.
She capped her season by hitting a PR in the hammer throw of 168-6 feet (51.37 meters) during the outdoor season, before finishing fourth at the GNAC Outdoor Championships in that event. Saribay was also a four-time all-academic selection, holding a 3.95 GPA in communication studies.
Next, conferences will select up to two nominees from their pool of nominees. The Woman of the Year selection committee will then choose 10 women from each division to make up the Top 30, which will be announced in October.
The selection committee will determine the top three honorees in each division announced in November, and the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will determine the 2025 NCAA Woman of the Year. The Woman of the Year will be celebrated at the 2026 NCAA Convention in January.
The full list of nominees:
Dyauni Boyce – Montana State Billings Women's Basketball
Amity Deters – Western Oregon Track & Field
Brooke Dexter – Simon Fraser Volleyball
Annika Esvelt – Seattle Pacific Cross Country and Track & Field
Kendall Kramer – Alaska Fairbanks Cross Country
Katie Potts – Western Washington Track & Field
Jocelyn Saribay – Saint Martin's Track & Field
Vikings athlete, Katie Potts, preparing for competition in a previous meet at Western Washington. Potts was a captain of the throwers unit and won 11 individual All-GNAC awards during her time there.
Annika Esvelt, a recent graduate from Seattle Pacific University, was one of eight nominees for the NCAA’s Woman of the Year award. Esvelt finished her collegiate career with five top 10 national finishes across three sports.
Saints thrower, Jocelyn Saribay, competing for Saint Martin’s. Saribay claimed the GNAC Indoor Championships gold medal in the weight throw with a toss of 52-9.25 feet (15.48 meters).ARTICLES BY MIKE MAYNARD
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