LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. -- In exclusive voting by the Senior Woman Administrators of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, Kelly Jurden of Texas Lutheran University has been selected 2022 SCAC Woman of the Year.
In addition to being recognized as SCAC Woman of the Year, she will be nominated for the 32th annual NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
"Kelly is one of the most decorated softball players in the history of Texas Lutheran University," said TLU Athletics Director Bill Miller. "She is the epitome of what we want all of our student-athletes to strive for. A tremendous athlete and an outstanding student, Kelly received the highest honors that Texas Lutheran awards for both athletics achievement and sportsmanship. We are extremely proud of what she has accomplished on the field and in the classroom. She is a winner, and her achievements as a TLU softball player are unequaled in program history."
The NCAA Woman of the Year Award honors graduating student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, community service and leadership.
Jurden becomes TLU's third SCAC Woman of the Year honoree since the institution joined the conference prior to the 2013-14 academic year. De'Anna Hernandez earned a share of the award in 2020 and Amanda Lochte won the award in 2017.
Jurden finished her athletic career as one of the most decorated athletes in Texas Lutheran history. She put together yet another staggering statistical season in 2022, breaking the NCAA single-season stolen base record (77) and all-time individual career stolen bases record (246) while spearheading a TLU offense that would break the single-season team stolen base record with 231 stolen bases on the season.
She is departing Texas Lutheran as the school's all-time leader in at-bats (621), runs (234), hits (260), stolen bases (242), walks (106), and on-base percentage (.503). Jurden is also the SCAC's all-time leader in career hits, walks, runs, and stolen bases. In 2021, she was named to the SCAC 30th Anniversary softball team.
Jurden is a three-time NFCA All-American for her performance on the field, and is TLU's all-time winningest player, finishing with a record of 179-24 over the course of five seasons with the Bulldogs winning a 2019 National Championship - the first in TLU softball history, claiming NCAA Runner-Up in 2021, and four SCAC Championships.
"Kelly has had a remarkable career at TLU," said Texas Lutheran head softball coach Wade Wilson. "She has been a role model in the classroom and on the field. It was an honor to spend the last five years with her. She is a great human being and going to do big things in this world."
Off the field, Jurden is a rare four-time CoSIDA Academic All-American and the first in TLU softball history, including CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-American and Academic All-America Team Member of the Year in 2022. She also served on the Texas Lutheran Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (2018-21), including taking the role of Secretary and Treasurer from 2020-21. In her spare time, Jurden served as a Waggin Tailz Rescue Training Volunteer and a Collaborative Learning Assistant Tutor.
"My time as a student athlete at Texas Lutheran University has allowed me to grow into a better leader, teammate, and woman," said Jurden. "Competing at the Division III level for five years, I was able to truly dedicate myself to the sports I love and the people I love, all while getting an excellent education."
Although COVID-19 cut her junior season short and pushed volleyball (the other sport she competed as a varsity student-athlete) into the spring season her senior season and no longer allowed her to play both sports, Jurden was able to find a positive in the midst of the pandemic.
Jurden was one of seven outstanding nominees considered by the SCAC Woman of the Year Committee. The other candidates were:
- Natalie McCoy, Basketball, Austin College
- Alyssa Davis, Tennis & Volleyball, Centenary College
- Megan Koch, Cross Country & Track and Field, Colorado College
- Jesse Stovall, Swimming, Southwestern University
- Lindsey Longuet, Softball, University of St. Thomas
- Hailey Coleman, Basketball, Trinity University
As the SCAC winner, Jurden will be nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, one of the most prestigious honors the NCAA bestows. The award recognizes senior student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in the areas of academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership.
All conference nominees will be forwarded to the NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee. The selection committee will choose the top 10 nominees in each division. From among those 30 honorees, the selection committee will determine the top three in each division. From the nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics then selects the NCAA Woman of the Year, who will be named this fall.
In conjunction with the changes in the nomination process for the NCAA Woman of the Year award, the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Woman of the Year award was established for the 2005-06 athletic season. Beginning in 2006, the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics (CWA) started receiving conference-designated nominees in lieu of the previous institution- and state-based nomination format.
From 1991 to 2005, each state had a woman of the year honoree and from that group 10 finalists were selected. From the top-10 finalists, the national winner was then chosen. Since 2006, each conference and independent school forwards nominations to the NCAA.
To read about past winners of the SCAC Woman-of-the-Year award, click here.
2018 - Britney Sullivan, outdoor track and field, Trinity University
2017 - Amanda Lochte, softball, Texas Lutheran University
2015 - Emily Jorgens, soccer, Trinity University
2013 - Rachel Thibodeau, volleyball, Southwestern University
