Ramirez-Tejeda Garners GNAC Woman of the Year Honors

WINTHROP, Mass. – The Great Northeast Athletic Conference is pleased to announce a pair of multi-sport standouts in Emmanuel College's Yuleska Ramirez-Tejeda (women's basketball/softball) and Suffolk University's Emily Manfra (cross country/track & field) have been selected as co-recipients of the 2020 GNAC Woman of the Year Award.

As part of the NCAA Woman of the Year program, the winners will both automatically be put forth for the prestigious national NCAA award, which spans across Divisions I, II and III. Each nominee must be a graduating female student-athlete, and the selection process is based upon service & leadership, academic achievement, athletics excellence, as well as a personal statement.

The other four 2020 GNAC finalists were Alison Fairbairn of Colby-Sawyer College cross country/track & field; Maria Coniglio of Johnson & Wales University (RI) women's volleyball; Mindy Esposito of Lasell University field hockey; and Lillian Bisset of Saint Joseph's College of Maine soccer/track & field. 

This year, a record 605 female college athletes were nominated for the 2020 NCAA Woman of the Year Award, which was established in 1991 to recognize graduating female student-athletes who have exhausted their eligibility and distinguished themselves in academics, athletics, service and leadership throughout their collegiate careers. The nominees include 259 nominees from Division I, 126 from Division II and 220 from Division III. Nominees competed in 24 sports, with multisport student-athletes accounting for 128 of the nominees.

Ramirez-Tejeda was a Saints two-sport standout both on the basketball hardwood and the softball diamond. The Criminal Justice major also minored in Spanish, graduating from Emmanuel with a 3.90 GPA. The Cambridge, Mass. native has three times earned the prestigious CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in her career: 2019 Basketball Second Team, 2020 Basketball First Team, and 2020 Softball Third Team.

In women's hoop, she was a three-time All-GNAC First Teamer and was named the 2020 GNAC Player of the Year. In 86 career games, she averaged 18.6 points (.524), 10.9 rebounds, 2.0 steals, and led Emmanuel to back-to-back GNAC titles and NCAA appearances her junior and senior seasons. Meanwhile for softball, she was a 2018 GNAC Third Team selection and was voted the 2019 GNAC Player of the Year along with the First Team nod, hitting .396 with 38 extra-base hits, including 18 homers, 59 runs, and 68 RBI in 76 career games. She had a ridiculous 1.653 OPS through six games this spring before the season's abrupt cancellation.

Ramirez-Tejeda was the Andrew Yosinoff Athletic Achievement Award Recipient, given annually to a senior athlete who has excelled on the playing field and provided the greatest contribution to the athletic reputation of Emmanuel College through exceptional athletic achievement. Some of her leadership opportunities included lead captain for local school community service projects with the basketball program, a youth counselor and camp mentor at Tenacity Summer Camp, member of the Emmanuel SAAC, work-study student within the athletic department, stints working for both Emmanuel Campus Safety and the Emmanuel Office of Diversity & Inclusion, and a Boston Police Department internship.

"I am extremely honored to be a co-recipient for the GNAC Woman of the Year honor," said Ramirez-Tejeda upon learning of the distinction. "I am humbled to have been selected for this award alongside an amazing student-athlete in Emily Manfra. Emmanuel gave me more than I could have ever imagined and am forever indebted to those that played a part in my journey there. I'm thankful to all my coaches, teammates, professors, athletic admins,  trainers, family and forever friends for their continuous love and support over the last three years! This journey wouldn't have been half of what it was without you guys, so from the bottom of my heart thank you so much! This award isn't just mine, it belongs to every person who has contributed to making me the player and person I'm today! You all deserve it more than I do."

Ramirez-Tejeda's WOTY application personal statement: "Growing up with a single mother shaped me into the person I am today. I grew up with a strong mother who wanted something better for me and my siblings. From a young age, she taught us to work hard and fight through life's adversities. Seeing my mother struggle and sacrifice so much inspired me to work hard for everything. By the age of nine, I saw everything I didn't want to be and used sports as an outlet to be someone my mom believed in – someone she could be proud of. My student-athlete experiences have given me lifetime friends, endless memories, laughter, and valuable life lessons that I'll cherish forever. As a student-athlete, I've accomplished more than I ever dreamt of. I've done things that have even shaken me, but to me, those are not my most important accomplishments. I loved every second of being a collegiate athlete because not many have the opportunity to experience that. It has been a privilege wearing an Emmanuel jersey for the last three years. Aside from winning championships or upsetting teams nobody else thought we would, my greatest accomplishment would have to be the relationships I built, as well as leaving Emmanuel better than I found it. Today, I thank Coach Andy Yosinoff and his staff for taking a chance on me when nobody else did. He bet on me and believed that I could come into his program and be the leader he envisioned. I owe everything to him and I'm the player today because of him. He has done things for me that nobody else has and I'm forever grateful. To all of my teammates: thank you for always having my back and making me look better than I was as a player. Others looking up to me pushed me to be the best version of myself because I feared letting you down. To Coach Olivia Berry: thank you for creating a softball family culture, for bringing your passion and competitiveness every day, and for always forcing me to be comfortable being uncomfortable. To my forever friends: thank you for being the best support system anyone could ask for. You all have truly changed my life. I'm indebted to Emmanuel for allowing me to grow and be a part of something bigger than myself. Being a student-athlete allowed me to push through adversity, be tough and never give up. It gave me the opportunity to lead others and inspire youths to believe that they can achieve greatness. Emmanuel gave me the necessary tools to go on and make the world a better place. I hope that the legacy I'm leaving behind goes far beyond broken records, winning seasons, championships, and individual awards. I hope I have inspired those who look up to me to shoot for the stars and never give up on their dreams. Bet on yourself even when nobody else does and be the change you wish to see in the world one day."

Manfra is a two-time (2019, 2020) CoSIDA Academic All-America selection, earning First Team status this spring after earning Second Team accolades from CoSIDA a year ago. The Stoneham, Mass. native finished with a stellar 3.99 GPA as a Biology major, starring both on the track in the winter and spring, as well as cross country in the fall. She also volunteered as a Bio teacher's and research assistant in addition to her captain duties for the Rams programs.

In indoor track & field, in 2019 Manfra was the first-ever Ram and GNAC student-athlete to earn All-America status at the NCAA Championships, finishing fifth in the mile (4:54.13) at the nearby Reggie Lewis Center in Boston not far from the Suffolk campus. In 2020, Manfra was a favorite to finish in the top-eight to earn NCAA All-America status, if not contend for the individual national title, before COVID-19 forced the spring's cancellation.

In outdoor track & field, in 2019 she also qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 1500, just missing All-America accolades by finishing ninth in all of Division III. Meanwhile in cross country, she was a two-time NCAA national qualifier,  and across the three separate sports, she earned a GNAC Athlete/Runner of the Year individual honor once in each.

Manfra's WOTY application personal statement: "My four years at Suffolk have impacted my life in nearly every facet. When deciding which college to attend, Suffolk caught my eye due to its busy location in bustling downtown Boston and its tight-knit biology program. I had considered participating in sports at the collegiate level, but was more focused on choosing a school for its academic opportunities. My life had always revolved around athletics, as I played soccer from the time I could walk and had participated in lacrosse and track. During my high school years, I faced my first major challenges in the form of injuries. I tore my right ACL at soccer tryouts freshman year, and proceeded to tear my left ACL my junior year. Battling back from two major injuries was difficult, but the chance to continue competing propelled me through rehabilitation. My love for athletics and my comfort with the routine of balancing school and sports ultimately drove me to begin running at Suffolk. When I began, there was only a cross country program, but by my sophomore year the department had added both indoor and outdoor track. Along with track and field, the school gained an outstanding coach in Will Feldman, whose drive to improve Suffolk's programs is unparalleled. Under coach Feldman's guidance, I was able to unlock a new level of work ethic that I did not know was in me. As the miles kept piling on, it seemed to only increase my craving to improve and compete. The love of self-improvement began to bleed over into every aspect of my college career. Running centers around self-motivation, which drove me to also compete in the classroom. I finished my undergraduate journey with a 3.99 in biology, which was no easy feat. I was enrolled in difficult classes like anatomy and organic chemistry and maintained a part-time job, all while waking up at 6AM each morning to attend practice all year long. Despite the never-ending busy schedule, I loved every minute of it. I learned not to complain about all that I was involved in, as my passion for both biology and collegiate running were synonymous with my identity."

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 13 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience. 

- Release courtesy of the GNAC Communications Office