Former University of Redlands women's soccer standout Becky Willis '09 is one of 10 NCAA Division III semifinalists for the 2009 NCAA Woman of the Year, according to an announcement made on Aug. 20.

Willis, who was chosen as the representative for the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC), joins 29 semifinalists from the three divisions of the NCAA.

She endured a competitive nomination process, which included 132 conference nominees representing all three divisions.

The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics will trim down the list of 30 semifinalists to nine finalists--three from each division--next month. All semifinalists are invited to attend the 2009 Woman of the Year awards dinner on Oct. 18 in Indianapolis, IN.

The lone Division III recipient of the award was Ashley Jo Rowatt, a swimmer from Kenyon College (OH), in 2003.

A three-year starter for the Bulldog women's soccer team, Willis embodied the ideals of a true scholar-athlete throughout her four years at Redlands. She compiled a 3.664 GPA as a Communicative Disorders major while earning three First-Team All-SCIAC honors and two National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas® All-America laurels. In April, she was named the Frank Serrao Student-Athlete of the Year for the women and also received her department's Outstanding Senior Award for posting a 3.98 GPA in her major. Currently, she is taking classes at the University of Texas at Dallas toward a master's degree in Speech-Language Pathology.

Semifinalists

Division I
Amanda Blumenherst (Duke, ACC, golf)
Jennifer Kleinhans (Connecticut, Big East, field hockey)
Ladia Albertson-Junkans (Minnesota, Big Ten, XC, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Loren Groves (Kansas State, Big 12, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Yolanda Odenyo (Oklahoma State, Big 12, soccer)
Eleanor Waite (Rice, Conference USA, XC, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Lacey Nymeyer (Arizona, Pac-10, Swimming & Diving)
Ashleigh Clare-Kearney (LSU, SEC, Gymnastics)
Laura Hermanson (N. Dakota State, Summit, soccer, XC, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Julie Rubenstein (Pepperdine, West Coast, Volleyball)

Division II
Jasimen Bailey (CSU Stanislaus, CCCA, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Meghan Haas (CSU San Bernardino, CCCA, volleyball)
Kathleen Tafler (Grand Valley State, GLIAC, soccer)
Ashley Puga (Northwest Nazarene, Great Northwest, XC, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Kelsey Yeatts (St. Edwards, Heartland, soccer)
Amie Boles (Texas Woman's, Independent, gymnastics)
Emily Brister (West Texas A&M, Lone Star, basketball)
Venessa Lee (Pittsburg State, MIAA, XC, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Kailey Egbert (Saint Rose, Northeast-10, soccer)
Anna Atkinson (Wingate, South Atlantic, basketball)

Division III
Caitlin Mullarkey (Swarthmore, Centennial, soccer, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Kelsey Steffens (Wartburg, IIAC, volleyball, indoor and outdoor track & field)
Emily Love (Vassar, Liberty League, swimming)
Tanesha Hughes (Monmouth [IL], Midwest, basketball, volleyball, indoor and outdoor track)
Katherine Theisen (St. Thomas [MN], MIAC, XC, indoor and outdoor track)
Elisa Tropiano (Amherst, NESCAC, XC, indoor and outdoor track)
Tracy Menzel (Kenyon, North Coast, swimming)
Rebecca Willis (Redlands, SCIAC, soccer)
Julia Hopson (Fredonia State, SUNYAC, indoor and outdoor track)
Dani Huffman (Emory, UAA, volleyball)