GRAND FORKS, N.D. – After helping headline the first back-to-back Big Sky title winners in program history during her two seasons as a Fighting Hawk, Tamara Merseli continues to bring in the accolades as the Belgrade, Serbia, native was recognized as one of the two conference's selection for the 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year.

Merseli was one of 153 conference-level honorees to be selected by the NCAA after the record 581 nominations for the prestigious national award, the most in the program's 28-year history. The 2018 graduate was chosen for her achievements in the classroom, in sports, and in the community.
 
In 2017, Merseli was tied for second on the team in kills (369), second in digs (527), and led the team in total attacks (1,346). The Serbian started every match in her two-year stint with the program and recorded double-digit kills in 34 of her 74 games (45.9%) while also appearing on the Big Sky All-Academic Team in back-to-back seasons.
 
Merseli also became only the third player in UND history to reach the 1,000 dig club in just two seasons, recording a whopping 27 double-doubles over that span. A three-time winner of the league's player of the week, she was named to the All-Big Sky First Team in 2016 as well as being named Newcomer of the Year in the same year.
 
Next, conference-level nominations will be forwarded to the NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee, which will choose the top 10 honorees in each of the three NCAA divisions. The NCAA will announce the Top 30 honorees on ncaa.org in early September.
 
The 2018 NCAA Woman of the Year will be announced at an awards dinner in Indianapolis on Sunday, October 28, 2018.