Azusa Pacific's Jaci Maze endured a career of injuries on the soccer field but ultimately earned First Team All-Pacific West Conference honors while leading her Cougar team to the NCAA postseason in her final season of collegiate eligibility.

But her greatest honor may have come after her time on the field was over. Today, she is a PacWest Conference nominee for the NCAA Woman of the Year. She will be listed among the most elite student-athletes in each of the three divisions of the NCAA. Next, the Woman of the Year Selection Committee will choose the Top 30 honorees - 10 from each division - from the conference-level nominees. The Top 30 honorees will be announced this fall.

Maze joins fellow soccer standout Bethany Arabe (Point Loma) as one of two PacWest nominees. (see Arabe release here)

A 5-foot-7 forward, Maze had ten goals and 22 total points in 2024 for the Cougars. The goals scored ranked third in the conference and the points listed second. She earned First Team All-PacWest honors and Second Team NCAA All-West Region status. These honors and success came after battling through a career beset by injuries, where she only played a total of 16 matches through her first three seasons and a total of 300 minutes.

Still, she was a team captain for three seasons, honored by her teammates and coaches for her outstanding leadership and success off the field. 

"I am incredibly proud of Jaci Maze being nominated for NCAA Women of the year," said her coach Brooke Lincoln. "I may be biased, but I don't think there is another person more deserving than Jaci. Jaci is a natural leader, has the highest integrity, and is always looking to put others before herself.

"I am a better coach, and more importantly a better person and Christ-follower having had the blessing of spending five years with Jaci. Her pursuit of excellence on the field, in the classroom, and in the community continues to inspire me, her teammates, and peers. She is the image of all things APU women's soccer is about- honoring God, pursuing excellence, competing nationally."

The success starts for the Visalia, Calif. native in the classroom. The Biochemistry major (Pre-Health Professions concentration) carried a 3.99 grade point average through her undergrad career, graduating in 2024. She added her Master's in Public Health this past year and is now in medical school at Loma Linda.

Maze's list of academic awards is long. She was named the PacWest Women's Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the year for 2024-25. She earned APU's Biology/Chemistry Scholar-Athlete Research Award, is a two-time winner of the Outstanding Presentation at the APU Stem Research Symposium and is a COPE Health Scholar.

Off the field and out of the classroom, she is a three-time recipient of the APU Athletics Servant Leadership Award. She was the APU SAAC President and attended the NCAA Drug and Alcohol Awareness Conference. Additonally, she served on missions trips to Mexico and Medelin, Columbia. 

""It is a true privilege to not only represent Azusa Pacific University but also the entire PacWest Conference as one of the 2025 NCAA Women of the year nominees," Maze said. "I am incredibly grateful for the people who have shaped my journey, modeling the service, love, and boldness of Christ while always challenging me to do the same.

"As the first female collegiate athlete in my family, and the first to attend medical school, I have passionately faced and overcome significant adversity. My experience as student athlete has grown my determination, resilience, and selfless heart for serving others; qualities I am committed to carrying with me as I become a physician committed to serving underserved communities like the one that raised me."

Maze is the sixth Azusa Pacific University nominee from the PacWest since 2013, which includes 2024 nominee Sarah Mitzel who advanced in the process all the way to NCAA Division II Top 10. 

The NCAA Woman of the Year program honors the academic achievements, athletics 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.

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 NCAA Woman of the Year, who is named during the NCAA Convention in January 2026 in Washington, D.C.

The NCAA Woman of the Year program has recognized graduating female student-athletes since 1991 for excellence in academics, athletics, community service, and leadership throughout their college careers. For more information about the program and previous winners, please visit ncaa.org/woty.