NEW YORK—Rising fifth year high jumper Roschell Clayton (Montego Bay, Jamaica) was announced on Tuesday morning as one of two BIG EAST nominees for the 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year award. It is the second time in the last three years that a Villanova women's track & field athlete has been one of the BIG EAST student-athletes selected to be nominated for one of the nation's most prestigious honors. Clayton and DePaul women's track & field athlete Noelle Malkamaki will each be forwarded to the Woman of the Year selection committee along with other conference level honorees.
 
The NCAA Woman of the Year program was established in 1991 and honors the academic achievements, athletics excellence, community service and leadership of graduating female college athletes from all three divisions. One of the first winners of the esteemed honor was Wildcats women's track & field national champion and current Villanova University Board of Trustees member Nnenna Lynch who was the 1993 NCAA Woman of the Year.
 
Clayton is a three-time All-American high jumper and tallied top-eight NCAA finishes both indoors (tied for sixth place) and outdoors (tied for fifth place) during the 2024 collegiate seasons. She went on to compete on home soil earlier this summer at the Jamaica National Senior Championships where she was the silver medalist in the high jump in the country's Olympic Trials.
 
In addition to her pair of first team All-America honors this year, Clayton swept the BIG EAST indoor and outdoor high jump titles and was the Penn Relays champion. She set the absolute Villanova record in the high jump at 1.88 meters in Boston in February and then equaled the mark at the indoor NCAA Championships in the same venue one month later. Clayton added an outdoor school record (1.87m) at the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore. in June.
 
Clayton graduated magna cum laude from Villanova a semester early in December 2023 and earned her bachelor's degree as a communication major. She is currently pursuing her MBA from the Villanova School of Business. Clayton is a four-time member of both the United States Track & Field and Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Team and the BIG EAST All-Academic Team. She was the 2024 PhillySIDA Academic All-Area Women's Track & Field Performer of the Year and was chosen as one of two 2023-24 Villanova Senior Student-Athletes of the Year. Clayton has been named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll all eight of her semesters on campus.
 
Community service is another component of the NCAA Woman of the Year nomination and Clayton has continuously been active in service projects on and off campus. Among the highlights from 2024 are taking part in Read Across America at Randor Elementary School and Coopertown Elementary, while also taking part in leadership talks at Radnor Middle School. Clayton has also volunteered each year at the St. Thomas of Villanova Day of Service and the annual Special Olympics festival held on campus. She has participated in the Holiday Adopt A Family program and Villanova's Juneteenth Day of Service.
 
Each of the BIG EAST nominees for the 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year are track & field athletes with the selections of Clayton and DePaul shot put competitor Malkamaki.
 
All conference-level nominees are forwarded to the national Woman of the Year selection committee. The selection committee will choose the top 10 honorees in each division. From among those 30 honorees, the selection committee will determine the three finalists in each division. Finally, the members of the Committee on Women's Athletics will vote from among the top nine finalists to determine the 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year. Later this fall, the national Top 30 honorees and nine finalists will be announced. The 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced at the 2025 NCAA Convention in January.
 
Eligibility for the 2024 NCAA Woman of the Year award is based on the following criteria:
 

 
The NCAA Woman of the Year program is rooted in Title IX and has recognized graduating female college athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership since 1991. For more information about the program and previous winners, please visit http://ncaa.org/woty.