LOWELL, Ore. – Stanford senior coxswain Nicole Pofcher was named Pac-12 Women's Rowing Scholar-Athlete of the Year on Sunday.
Pofcher is the Cardinal's sixth Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year, following Grace McGinley (2021), Naomi Cornman (2015), Ali Fauci (2014), Mariele Higgins (2012), and Erika Roddy (2011).
The Winnetka, Ill. native is an International Relations major with a Sustainability minor and carries a cumulative 4.057 GPA.
Pofcher is an accomplished rower, most recently leading the Cardinal's varsity four boat to a Pac-12 Championship on Sunday. In 2021, she earned first-team All-America honors after coxing the Cardinal's varsity eight to second place at the 2021 Pac-12 Championship and a runner-up finish at the 2021 NCAA Championship. She is a two-time CRCA Scholar-Athlete and a two-time Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll honoree.
On dry land, Pofcher is an active member of the Stanford community, spending her time as a Stanford tour guide, a member of the Stanford Senior Class cabinet, and a peer advisor for the International Relations department. She also executed the photography efforts for Stanford's Sierra Camp, an alumni family camp just outside South Lake Tahoe during the summer of 2019, and will once again lead the efforts in 2022.
After graduation, Pofcher will start as a full-time Business Analyst at McKinsey and Company in San Francisco.
The Pac-12 selects Scholar Athletes of the Year in 24 sponsored sports: baseball, men's basketball, women's basketball, men's cross country, women's cross country, beach volleyball, football, men's golf, women's golf, women's gymnastics, women's lacrosse, men's rowing, women's rowing, men's soccer, women's soccer, softball, men's swimming and diving, women's swimming and diving, men's tennis, women's tennis, men's track and field, women's track and field, women's volleyball, and wrestling.
The nomination criteria are: senior (in athletics eligibility) on track to receive a degree, cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, participation in at least 50 percent of the scheduled contest in the sport, and a minimum of one year in residence at the institution.
Each Pac-12 institution nominates one individual per sport, and the winners are selected by a committee of Pac-12 staff members at the conclusion of each sport's regular season. The athletic accomplishments of the nominees are a consideration in the voting for the award.