Courtesy of North Carolina Central Athletic Communications


INDIANAPOLIS — A couple months after graduation, Paulina Afriyie continues to represent North Carolina Central positively for all of her undergraduate success and achievements after being announced as NCCU's nominee for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year Award on Tuesday.
 
Afriyie is one of a record-setting 605 nominees for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award, including one of 259 nominees from NCAA Division I. 
 
Rooted in Title IX, the NCAA Woman of the Year Award was established in 1991 to recognize graduating female student-athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves in academics, athletics, service and leadership throughout their collegiate careers.
 
Afriyie was named the NCCU Women's Student-Athlete of the Year at the 2020 Eddies. She accumulated numerous awards in her senior season, including BOXTOROW Division I Women's Basketball All-America Team, First Team All-MEAC, NCCU women's basketball team MVP, NCCU women's basketball Debra Saunders-White Leadership Award and NCCU Student-Athlete of the Month.
 
The Bronx, N.Y., resident averaged 14.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 1.4 assists and 1.2 blocks per game for the Eagles this past season. Afriyie earned three MEAC Player of the Week and two MEAC Defensive Player of the Week awards along the way.
 
Afriyie helped the N.C. Central women's basketball team to its best season since transitioning to the DI ranks in 2007-08 by registering 14 double-doubles and ranking second in the MEAC in rebounds per game (9.6), third in the conference in field goal percentage (50.5%), fourth in points per game (14.5), seventh in blocks per game (1.13), eighth in free throw percentage (70.8%) and 15th in steals per game (1.5).
 
The three-time team MVP scored her 1,000th career point in January and finished with 1,203 career points for the Eagles, which ranks ninth all time at NCCU and second in the DI era. She also became the DI era record holder with 955 career rebounds (third all-time at NCCU) and 129 career blocks.
 
Afriyie was a biology and pre-med major at NCCU and she finished with a cumulative 3.241 grade point average (GPA). She earned MEAC Commissioner's All-Academic Team laurels three times. Afriyie plans to join a physician assistant program and help those in underserved communities.
 
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 Top 30, the Woman of the Year selection committee will determine the top three honorees in each division and announce nine finalists. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then will choose the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year, who will be named this fall.