KENNEDY'S NCAA APPLICATION LETTER - "MY WHY?"
FEATURE STORIES: EAGLE TRIBUNE FEATURE | LIVING OUT A DREAM
BEVERLY, Mass. — Recent Endicott College graduate Mackenzie Kennedy (Andover, Mass./women's volleyball) has been selected as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) nominee for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year Award, as announced by the conference office on Wednesday afternoon.
As the conference nominee, Kennedy will be forwarded to the Woman of the Year selection committee, which will choose the top 10 honorees in each NCAA division. The committee will then determine the top three candidates from each division from that pool. The nine finalists will be sent to the Committee on Women's Athletics, which will vote to determine the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year. The winner will be announced in the fall.
Since 2006, Endicott has had the most nominees chosen as the CCC representative and is the only school during that span to be selected as the conference's nominee three years in a row.
The five student-athletes selected for Endicott during that span are Hall of Famer Ashley Wright '11 (Merrimack, N.H./women's basketball/softball), Samantha DiBella '16 (Danvers, Mass./softball), Emylee Wood '18 (Kensington, N.H./field hockey), Abigail Keim '19 (Williston, Vt./cross country/track & field), and Kennedy, with the final three making up Endicott's record-setting NCAA Woman of the Year trifecta.
Prior to 2006, the NCAA Woman of the Year format picked its winners by state, i.e, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, etc., and not via conference affiliation(s), as it stands now. Based upon available data, Salve Regina leads all CCC institutions — past or present — with six honorees total (1994, 1995, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013), while Endicott's list of five ranks second despite joining the conference in 1999.
"We're all extremely proud of this honor for Mackenzie. She's worked as hard as she could over her four years at Endicott on being a great teammate and leader," said Endicott women's volleyball head coach Tim Byram. "Her example and voice both in our program and around the entire department will be missed. She has been a great role model in regards to what it means to be a committed student-athlete and we know she has a bright future ahead."
The example Kennedy set for her teammates and others around her includes a myriad of accomplishments in all facets of the Endicott student-athlete experience.
Here's a complete list of Kennedy's accolades sorted by academics, athletics, internships/clinicals, and volunteer work.
Recent Awards
- 2020 CCC NCAA Woman of the Year selection (first in program history to earn this honor)
- 2020 Endicott NCAA Woman of the Year selection
Academics
- Major: Athletic Training | GPA: 3.82
- Athletic Training Magna Cum Laude honors
- Endicott Scholars Program (four years)
- Senior Thesis Topic: "Breathe Slow, Move Fast: A Study of the Effects of Meditation on Concussion Rehabilitation in Athletes"
- 2019 CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team
- 2019 CCC Academic All-Conference
- 2018 CCC Academic All-Conference
- 2017 CCC Academic All-Conference
- 8x Dean's List
- National Athletic Training Association (NATA) District I Student Ambassador (2018-20)
Athletics
- 3x NSCA Strength & Conditioning All-American
- 2019 AVCA All-American Honorable Mention
- 2019 AVCA All-New England First Team
- 2018 AVCA All-New England Honorable Mention
- 2019 CCC Libero of the Year
- 2018 CCC Libero of the Year
- 2019 All-CCC First Team
- 2018 All-CCC First Team
- 8x CCC Libero of the Week
- 1x CCC Rookie of the Week
- 3x CCC Champion
- 3x NCAA Tournament appearances
- 4x CCC Tournament appearances
- 2019 Team Captain
- EC L.E.A.D. Member (2018-20)
Internships/Clinicals
- Boston College Football Student Athletic Trainer (2019)
- Boston College Football Camps Certified Medical Spotter (2019)
- Boston College Men's Basketball Student Athletic Trainer (2019)
- Boston College Men's Ice Hockey Student Athletic Trainer (2018-19)
- Endicott College Men's Lacrosse, Women's Lacrosse, Baseball, & Men's Ice Hockey Student Athletic Trainer
- Hamilton-Wenham High School Varsity Football Student Athletic Trainer (2018)
- Drumhill Physical Therapy PT Aide (2016-17)
- Institute of Performance and Fitness Strength and Conditioning Coach
- CPR/AED Certification Aide (2019)
Volunteer Work
- ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (2017-19)
- Endicott Athletic Training Food Drive (2016-19)
- Will Archibald Wheelchair Basketball Scholarship Fundraiser (2016-19)
- Rise Against Hunger Food Packaging (2017-19)
- Habitat For Humanity (2017)
- Endicott Athletics Toy Drive (2016-19)
- Andover Boys and Girls Club (2016-18)
ABOUT THE COMMONWEALTH COAST CONFERENCE
The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), founded in 1984, is an NCAA Division III athletic conference comprised of nine full-member and two associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition, and a meaningful student life. The conference administers championships in 18 intercollegiate sports. In 2020, the conference will expand to 10 full members and 19 championship sports with the addition of Suffolk University and women's ice hockey, respectively.
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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)
(Research and portions of this release courtesy are of the CCC Office)
