SAN FRANCISCO, CA. — Gianna Sbarbaro was one of two WCC nominees for the 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year Award, the West Coast Conference announced on Wednesday morning.

Created in 1991, the NCAA Woman of the Year Award recognizes graduating female student-athletes who have distinguished themselves in athletics, academics, leadership, and community service.

Sbarbaro, a graduate student who joined San Diego Cross Country and Track during the 2019-2020 season, competed in the NCAA West Regional three years in a row and became the first runner in school history at the NCAA Cross Country Championships her sophomore year. That same year, she broke both the cross country 6k school record with a time of 20:48.80 and the track 5k school record with a time of 16:46.61. Both records still stand today for USD Women's Cross Country and Track.

Throughout her time at USD, Sbarbaro was an active member of the community, serving as a captain of her team and part of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) for three years. She was also selected to be part of the USD Alcalá 100, a distinguished group of 100 graduating students nominated by faculty, administrators, and staff, and chosen by alumni.

The Kailua, Hawaii native found success both on and off the course, earning WCC All-Academic Team honors four times and graduating Summa Cum Laude with a GPA of 3.93. She will continue her education at San Diego this fall having earned a scholarship for graduate studies.

Next, the NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee will identify the Top 30 – 10 from each division – from the Conference nominees. From there, they will select three finalists from each division. From the nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will select the NCAA Woman of the Year, who is named during a luncheon at the NCAA Convention in January of 2025.
 
For more information about the program and previous winners, please visit ncaa.org/woty.