Middlebury field hockey and lacrosse dynamo Erin Nicholas has been named one of nine finalists for the 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year award. 

The nine finalists consist of three student-athletes from each NCAA division. Each finalist was selected for her outstanding achievements in academics, athletics, community service and leadership. Representing Division I, the finalists are Jaeda Daniel, NC State; Brooke Forde, Stanford; and Victoria Tran, Navy. Zoe Baker, Colorado School of Mines; Kayla Tennant, Queens (North Carolina); and Hanna Thrainsdottir, Georgian Court, are the finalists from Division II. Division III finalists include Karenna Groff, MIT; Macy Klein, St. Catherine; and Nicholas.

Nicholas, a midfielder from Scarsdale, N.Y., who graduated in May with degrees in molecular biology and biochemistry, was a summa cum laude graduate. Nicholas was a three-time first-team College Sports Communicators Academic All-American and earned Middlebury's 2022 Charles B. Allen '62 Memorial Prize for biology, chemistry and physics, and she contributed to published research on iliopsoas muscle tightness and lower back pain in ice hockey players in 2020.

On top of her academic achievements, Nicholas was a six-time national champion. She won four field hockey titles and two lacrosse titles, making history as a member of the first D-III team to win four consecutive NCAA field hockey titles. She was the overall 2022 DIII Honda Athlete of the Year.

Nicholas is plastered all over the Middlebury record books in both field hockey and lacrosse, holding seven top-10 listings. Her teams went a combined 151-9 in her time at Middlebury.

On January 12, the Top 30 honorees will be celebrated during a luncheon at the NCAA Convention in San Antonio. There, the 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year will be named.