FSU's Mudge Nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year Award

TALLAHASSEE (www.sportsdayjax.com) -  Florida State softball standout Kaley Mudge has been nominated for the prestigious NCAA Woman of the Year the NCAA announced this past week. Mudge was one of the NCAA-record 619 nominees for the award. 

The NCAA Woman of the Year program honors the academic achievements, athletics excellence, community service and leadership of graduating female college athletes from all three divisions. 

Mudge has proven to be phenomenal on and off the softball diamond. 

In 2023, Mudge helped the Seminoles to another ACC Championship and their second NCAA WCWS National Runner-Up finish in the last three seasons. Mudge earned Second Team All-ACC honors and was named to the WCWS All-Tournament Team for the second time in her career. Mudge started 67 games for the Seminoles and was second on the team with a .346 batting average while driving in 43 runs. 

In the midst of the 2023 season, Mudge was chosen to speak in front of the country's leaders at the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee hearing titled "Taking the Buzzer Beater to the Bank: Protecting College Athletes' NIL Dealmaking Rights" in Washington D.C. in March. 

Mudge was the lone active student-athlete to speak at the hearing and was joined by Patriot League Commissioner Jennifer Heppel, Virginia State University President Dr. Makola M. Abdullah, former NFL player Trey Burton, Washington State Director of Athletics Pat Chun and Executive Director and Founder of the College Football Players Association Jason Stahl.

In May, Mudge graduated Cum Laude with a degree in exercise physiology. She was one of 53 athletes to earn the ACC Postgraduate Scholarship while also earning a spot on the All-ACC Academic Team and the ACC Honor Roll. 

The Woman of the Year Selection Committee made up of representatives from the NCAA membership, will choose the Top 30 honorees — 10 from each division — from the conference-level nominees. The Top 30 honorees will be announced in October.

The selection committee will then determine the top three honorees in each division from the Top 30, and the nine finalists will be announced in November. From those nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will choose the 2023 NCAA Woman of the Year. The honorees will be celebrated at the Woman of the Year Award Ceremony at the NCAA Convention in Phoenix in January.

Since 1991, The NCAA Woman of the Year program has recognized graduating female student-athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service, and leadership throughout their college careers.