Raya Coley Named SAC Minority/International Woman of the Year, Rami Mullen also a NCAA Woman of the Year Nominee

FULL NCAA RELEASE

FULL SOUTH ATLANTIC CONFERENCE RELEASE

INDIANAPOLIS and ROCK HILL, S.C. - Coker University women's basketball graduate Raya Coley was named the South Atlantic Conference Minority/International Woman of the Year and a NCAA Woman of the Year nominee, while volleyball graduate Rami Mullen was also named a NCAA Woman of the Year nominee announced today (Thursday, July 14). 

In total, the NCAA is honoring 577 nominees including 127 student-athletes from Division II. The average grade point average of the nominee pool is 3.8, while the four pillars of the award are academics, athletics, service and leadership. 

Coley played in 76 games in her Coker career, making 26 starts. She has totaled 324 points, 163 rebounds, 45 assists, 20 steals and seven blocks. She was also named the SPC Credit Union Student-Athlete of the Month in January 2021. Academically, she has been named to the South Atlantic Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll three times and received the D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award twice while also being named to the President's List all four years and graduating as the top student in the Physical Education program with a 4.0 GPA. The Raleigh, N.C. native is the daughter of Charles and Krishnee Coley, and graduated from Coker with a bachelor's degree in physical education with a concentration in exercise science and a minor in psychology. Coley was active on and off of the court in the Coker community. She volunteered at Coker Enactus where she served as a project leader of the Women's Empowerment Project which specifically led to the promotion of female-owned businesses, highlighting, sponsoring and sponsoring one local business in particular during the heat of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was also involved in the Student-Athletes Advisory Committee, Coker Emerging Leaders, Hartsville Soup Kitchen, Coker Writer's Studio and many other extracurricular activities. Since graduating Coley will start PT school at Elon University in January of 2023 to continue her research and work of ensuring the next generation of athletes remain healthy.

Mullen played in 90 matches and 304 sets in her Coker career. She totaled 112 kills, 33 aces, 659 digs, two solo blocks and 16 block assists, while also being the fifth player in program history to record 1,500 career assists. Academically, she was named to the South Atlantic Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll four times and received the D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award three times. The Oak Island, N.C. native is the daughter of Jeff and Andrea Mullen, and graduated from Coker with a bachelor's degree in sociology with minors in criminology and psychology. 

 Coley will move forward as the South Atlantic Conference nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year.