GREENVILLE, Pa. – Thiel College graduate Morgan Berg (Cleveland, Ohio/Rocky River) was officially named a nominee Tuesday for the 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year award.
The Woman of the Year Award program, established in 1991, is in its 26th year of existence. There were 517 honorees in 2016, 169 of which represented Division III. Of the 517 honorees, Berg was among the 127 student-athletes who competed in more than one sport.
Throughout her career, and especially during her senior campaign, Berg achieved high honors in athletics, academics, service and leadership, the four pillars of the Woman of the Year award.
Per a vote of Thiel College head coaches, Berg was named the winner of the J. Lynn Trimble award last week. Named after former Thiel College softball and volleyball coach J. Lynn Trimble, the award is given to a female athlete from the previous year's senior class who, in the judgment of the head coaches, best demonstrated qualities of scholarship, leadership, character and sportsmanship in addition to participation in athletics.
In May, Berg was named to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Mideast Region team in the 100-meter hurdles with the second-best time in the region (14.41). She was also named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District First Team. Berg was one of Thiel College's representatives at the Third Annual PAC Scholar Athlete of the Year Banquet in May. An early childhood/special education major, Berg has secured an elementary teaching job in Virginia, and she may be interested in coaching track & field in the future.
A member of Chi Alpha Sigma, the national college athlete honorary, Berg served as Thiel College's historian for Kappa Delta Pi, an international education honorary. She was an eight-time PAC Academic Honor Roll honoree and received the College's Dean's Key as an eight-semester Dean's List student. Berg graduated with summa cum laude honors. She served as a member of the College's Relay for Life committee, on the executive committee of the Habitat for Humanity campus chapter and worked in the College's advancement office.
Berg earned her fourth-straight indoor track & field title in the 60-meter hurdles, finishing with a winning and conference record time of 9.03 seconds in the finals, at the PAC Indoor Championships in February. She finished first and set school and conference records in the 100-meter hurdles (14.55) at the PAC Outdoor Championships in April. She also won the triple jump (35-0.5) and finished fifth in the long jump (15-11.5) at this year's outdoor championships. Since the PAC Outdoor Championships, she broke her own school record in the 100-meter hurdles on multiple occasions. Her best career finish in the 100-meter hurdles (14.41) occurred during the 11th Annual Gator Invitational, hosted by Allegheny College, on May 13. Berg went on to place 12th in the 100-meter hurdles (14.48) at the 2016 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
A three-time All-PAC selection as a member of Thiel's women's soccer program, Berg concluded her career with 62 points on 26 goals and 10 assists. She ranks second in program history in career goals and third in career points and career assists.
Moving forward, NCAA member conferences will select up to two nominees. The Woman of the Year selection committee will then 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. The 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year is selected from the final nine by the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics. The 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced at the annual awards ceremony Oct. 16 in Indianapolis.
