2025NCAAWomanoftheYearNominees

Women's Volleyball John Jay Sports Information

Kristin Gretener (Women's Volleyball) And Ashley Zeolla (Women's Basketball) Nominated For 2025 NCAA Woman of the Year Award

New York, NY - Two recently graduated John Jay College student-athletes have been nominated for the 2025 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Woman of the Year award. Kristin Gretener from the women's volleyball team and Ashley Zeolla from the women's basketball team are this year's nominees for the Bloodhounds.
 



The NCAA Woman of the Year program was established in 1991 and honors the academic achievements, athletic excellence, community service, and leadership of graduating female college athletes from all three divisions.  To be eligible, a nominee must have competed and earned a varsity letter in an NCAA-sponsored sport and must have earned her undergraduate degree by Summer 2025.

Eligible female student-athletes are nominated by their member school.  Each conference office then reviews the nominations from its core member schools (and sponsored sports) and submits its conference nominee(s) to the NCAA. All nominees who compete in a sport that is not sponsored by their school's primary conference, as well as associate conference nominees and independent nominees, will be sent to a separate pool to be considered by a committee.  Then, the NCAA Woman of the Year selection committee identifies the Top 30 – 10 from each division, and from there selects three finalists from each division.  From the nine finalists, the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then selects the 2025 NCAA Woman of the Year, who is named during the 2026 NCAA Convention.

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Gretener graduated Summa Cum Laude (With Highest Distinction) with her undergraduate degree in Criminology while holding a 4.0 cumulative GPA.

A two-time Academic All-District Team recipient from College Sports Communicators (CSC), Gretener earned several academic honors, including Dean's List Highest Achievers, John Jay College Honors Program Most Outstanding Capstone Nominee, and CUNYAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year (Nominee).

This past fall, she helped guide the Bloodhounds to the program's first CUNYAC title and NCAA Tournament berth. The Chestermere, Alberta native concluded her collegiate career with 932 digs, the second-most in program history.

Off the court, Gretener has put together an extensive extracurricular resume, which includes her involvement with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) as a representative for the women's volleyball program. She, along with five classmates, as part of the Election Processing Events in 2024, planned and hosted two election processing events, which were open to all John Jay students and faculty, collaborating with the College's Criminology and Sociology Activated (CASA). The event aimed to create a space for students to engage in an open discussion about their thoughts and feelings regarding the presidential election. Additionally, she participated in the College's 9/11 Flag Planting event, where each participant planted a flag of the College's Jay Walk in remembrance of every life lost during the September 11 attacks.

Away from campus, Gretener secured an internship with the New York Unified Court System, Office for Justice Initiatives, Division of Policy and Planning. Among her responsibilities were conducting legal research, drafting legal documents, delivering presentations, and attending meetings related to planning and procedures for Problem-Solving courts.

Gretener also volunteered and worked with Connie's Closet at an event on Staten Island. There, she would assist with the setup and breakdown, organization, and customer service. Connie's Closet is a legal aid initiative created by Connie Belnavis to provide young New Yorkers with essential clothing for court appearances, job interviews, graduations, and other important life events.


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Our second NCAA Woman of the Year nominee, Ashley Zeolla, capped off an impressive four-year career for the women's basketball team. The Yorktown Heights, NY native received her degree in Criminal Justice with minors in Criminology and English, graduating Cum Laude with a 3.53 cumulative GPA.

On the court this season, Zeolla led the Bloodhounds in several offensive categories, scoring 16.3 points per game and grabbing 7.6 rebounds. At season's end, she was named CUNYAC First Team All-Star while also earning Second Team All-ECAC and Third Team All-Metropolitan honors. She reached the 1,000 career point milestone and finished her collegiate tenure seventh on the all-time scoring list at 1,190.

In the classroom, she received Scholar-Athlete recognition for all four years, was named to the All-District Team by CSC, and earned Dean's List honors in her senior year.

As an active member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), she helped organize events that brought all student-athletes together to foster a stronger sense of community within athletics—these events included the annual DeWitt-Clinton Park Cleaning, 9/11 Flag Planting, and several campus-wide initiatives.

Beyond her accomplishments on the court and in the classroom, Zeolla is passionate about helping others. She donates blood and plasma to help those in critical need and also distributes food with the West Side Campaign Against Hunger.
She has also worked with the East Harlem Tutorial Program to support kids with their academics and extracurricular activities.

Zeolla was recently accepted into John Jay's International Crime and Justice graduate program. While taking Master's courses, she works for the College as a Public Safety Officer.
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Players Mentioned

Kristin Gretener

#13 Kristin Gretener

Libero
5' 6"
Senior
Junior
Ashley Zeolla

#20 Ashley Zeolla

Guard
6' 1"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Kristin Gretener

#13 Kristin Gretener

5' 6"
Senior
Junior
Libero
Ashley Zeolla

#20 Ashley Zeolla

6' 1"
Senior
Guard