June 12, 2007

ABILENE, Texas - Hardin-Simmons University senior volleyball player Virginia Aguilar, a two-time American Southwest Conference West Division Player of the Year and academic All-American, will be the ASC's nominee on the 2007 NCAA Woman of the Year ballot, the league office announced on Tuesday after a vote of the conference's Directors of Athletics and Faculty Athletics Representatives.

"In athletics, Virginia has always placed the goals of her teammates above any individual goal. I truly believe that she values the conference championship in volleyball that HSU won as a team this year more than any of the career records she has set," HSU Director of Athletics John Neese said of Aguilar, a computer science major who maintained a 4.0 grade-point average over her four-year playing career. "In the classroom, she has earned the respect of her professors and peers. She has set a high standard for all of our athletes to follow in the future."

In 2007, Aguilar (Kalaheo, Hawaii / Waimea HS) spearheaded the Cowgirls' first-ever ASC volleyball title and berth into NCAA national tournament. She was named Most Valuable Player of the league's championship tournament. Aguilar led the ASC with a .343 hitting percentage and was among the leaders in service aces and blocks en route to making a second straight appearance on the all-ASC team. The 5-10 middle blocker is the HSU record holder for kills, blocks, service aces and total points scored.

Aguilar was also active on the Abilene, Texas, campus in the Epsilon Pi Alpha service club, the Gamma Beta Phi and Delta Mu Delta business and computer science clubs. She represented the volleyball team on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

The NCAA Woman of the Year award honors senior student-athletes for their cumulative collegiate achievements in service, leadership, athletics and academics. Nominees must have earned a varsity letter in a NCAA-sponsored sport and competed during the 2006-07 academic year. Also, they must have completed intercollegiate eligibility in a primary sport by the end of the 2007 spring season or received an undergraduate degree prior to the conclusion of the spring 2007 term and have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.50 (4.00 scale).

A selection committee will choose the top 10 winners in each of the NCAA's three divisions. Among those 30 honorees, the committee will determine the top three in each division. Finally, the members of the CWA will vote from among the top nine to determine the 2007 NCAA Woman of the Year. The top three honorees from Divisions I, II and III will be honored and the 2007 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced at a dinner in Indianapolis on October 27, 2007.