Aurora University and the athletic department announced the 2016-2017 recipient of the Spartan Woman of the Year Award. The honor has been bestowed upon recent AU graduate Nikki Funk.

The Spartan Woman of the Year award honors a graduating female student-athlete athletes who has exhausted her eligibility and distinguished herself throughout her collegiate careers in academics, athletics, service and leadership.

"Nikki Funk has been a key part of the women's golf team for the past four years, three of which AU advanced to the NCAA Championship. As much as she has contributed on the course, she has given as much back in other ways to the University," said AU Associate Director of Athletics for Student-Athlete Wellbeing / Senior Woman Administrator Nicki Pieart. "She is a member of the Aurora University American Marketing Association (AMA) as well as being a resident assistant (RA). Nikki is a true leader and has made the most of her career at AU.  We wish her well in her future endeavors and thank her for all she has done for the AU community."

With being the AU Woman of the Year, Nikki Funk joins a distinguished list of female student-athletes from NCAA conferences and independent schools who have nominated a total of 544 female student-athletes for the 2017 NCAA Woman of the Year Award. These women, selected from a record 544 school nominees, represent college athletes spanning all three NCAA divisions. Of those nominated, 229 nominees competed in Division I, 117 in Division II and 198 in Division III.

In her four years as a Spartan women's golfer, Funk was a four-time Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference All-Conference honoree. In her final three seasons, she served as the team captain and led the Spartans to three consecutive NACC Championships and three appearances in the NCAA Division III Championship.

Off the course, Funk excelled in the classroom and with the AU AMA, graduating as a Gold Ivy Leaf recipient and Magna Cum Laude. She served as the Vice President of the AU/AMA, leader of the sports management team with the AU chapter receiving recognition as the No. 1 international AMA chapter out of over 300. Funk was visible throughout campus with her role as a RA.

The Woman of the Year selection committee, made up of representatives from the NCAA membership, will then choose the top 30 honorees – 10 from each division. From the top 30, the selection committee determines the top three honorees from each division and announces the nine finalists in September. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then chooses from among those nine to determine the 2017 NCAA Woman of the Year.

To view the list of NCAA Woman of the Year nominees, click here.