PITTSBURGH â€" Duquesne women's basketball guard April Robinson is among 517 female student-athletes â€" including eight from the Atlantic 10 Conference â€" nominated for the 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year award.

Now in its 26th year, the Woman of the Year award honors graduating female college athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in academics, athletics, service and leadership.

Of the record number of nominees, 231 competed at the Division I level.

The NCAA encourages member schools to honor its top graduating female student-athletes each year by submitting their names for consideration for the Woman of the Year award.

Then, conferences assess each nominee's eligibility and select up to two conference nominees. All conference nominees are forwarded to the Woman of the Year selection committee, which chooses the top 30 honorees â€" 10 from each division.

From the top 30, the selection committee determines the top three nominees from each division and announces the top nine finalists in September. The NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics then chooses from among those nine to determine the 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year.

The 2016 NCAA Woman of the Year winner will be announced, and the Top 30 honorees celebrated, at the annual award ceremony this Fall.

April Robinson | Duquesne University | Basketball | Hometown: Springfield, Va. |
Major: Management (working toward MBA in Business Administration)

Robinson, a four-year starter, was one of 10 finalists for the Nancy Lieberman Award which is presented annually to the nation's top point guard. The senior captain, who led the Dukes to the program's first-ever NCAA Championship appearance in 2015-16, finished her career ranked first on the DU record list in games started/played (133) and 3-pointers (249), second in assists (578) and fourth in total points (1,598) on her way to being named a WBCA Division I Coaches Honorable Mention All-American. The 2015-16 Atlantic 10 co-Player of the Year and First Team All-Conference pick also earned a spot on the A-10 All-Academic Team. The Springfield, Va. native, who graduated cum laude in December with her bachelor's degree in management and is currently pursuing her master's in business administration, has participated in numerous team volunteer activities, most recently lending support and camaraderie to a young cancer survivor. Robinson was named DU's Female Student-Athlete of the Year in April.