Moon Township, Pa. – Nneka Ezeigbo, a senior center on the Robert Morris University women's basketball team, has been selected as one of 30 nominees for the Senior CLASS Award, as announced by the organization in a press release Friday afternoon.
Ezeigbo is the lone Northeast Conference (NEC) women's student-athlete on the ballot, and one of 13 mid-major players to make the list. From the list of 30 candidates, a committee will select 10 finalists for the award in February, and those names will be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote. Fan balloting will be coupled with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award.
RELEASE: Men's and Women's Basketball Candidates Announced for the 2019-20 Senior CLASS Award
Hailing from Ewing, N.J., Ezeigbo has captained Robert Morris to a 9-6 overall record and perfect 4-0 mark in NEC play. The senior ranks in the top five of the conference in steals (2.1, 1st), rebounds (8.5, 3rd), field goal percentage (.462, 3rd), and scoring (14.5, 5th), and has posted five double-doubles thus far in 2019-20. She is four blocks shy of becoming the fourth player in program history with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 100 steals, and 100 blocks in a career.
A three-time All-NEC selection, Ezeigbo captured NEC Defensive Player of the Year and NEC Tournament MVP honors last season. She has helped lead the Colonials to three regular-season league crowns and a pair of tournament titles and subsequent NCAA Tournament berths. The center ranks seventh all-time at RMU in blocks (96) and rebounds (748), and can break into the top 10 for steals (148) with nine more.
A Psychology major, Ezeigbo owns a 3.57 cumulative grade point average and is on track to graduate in May of 2020. She entered the academic year as a three-time NEC Academic Honor Roll selection, and has posted a 4.0 GPA in consecutive fall semesters. In 2018-19, she was one of three non-senior finalists for the NEC Student-Athlete of the Year Award.
Ezeigbo has volunteered her time to many different local organizations and events, including the Go-For-The-Goal Foundation, Halloween Trick-or-Treat Spooktacular, Mooncrest Neighborhood After School Program, Heritage Valley Free Boys & Girls Basketball Clinic, Best Buddies International, and UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition.
Robert Morris continues a four-game home stand tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. when it hosts Merrimack at Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center. The Colonials conclude the stretch on Monday, Jan. 20 at 1:00 p.m. when Sacred Heart arrives in Moon Township.
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