The following is a spotlight on Sheridan Messier, one of two 2024 Virginia Commonwealth University nominees for the prestigious NCAA Woman of the Year award. The Atlantic 10 institutions nominated a total of 17 outstanding student-athletes for the award (READ MORE). The A-10 will spotlight each of the institutional nominees.
Sheridan Messier Profile
VCU’s Sheridan Messier is an
award-winning goalkeeper who
earned Atlantic 10 All-Conference
honors and ranked 16th nationally in
goals against average in 2024. Her .747
save percentage ranked 26th nationally.
She started 17 games for the Rams, and recorded
four shutouts with a .713 save percentage in 2022.
A member of the 2024 A-10 All-Academic Team,
Messier helped VCU earn the highest field hockey
team GPA in 2024. A graduate transfer from
Albany, she earned Dean’s List distinction every
semester at Albany. She earned bachelor’s
degrees from Albany in Chemistry and
Mathematics, and her master’s in Chemistry
with a minor in bio ethics from VCU. She
served as a chemistry research assistant, and
a chemistry teaching assistant.
A prolific volunteer, Messier served as the
Albany Student-Athlete Advisory Committee
(SAAC) president from 2020-2022 and she
volunteered at a regional food bank. At VCU
she was a student-athlete representative for
the VCU Safe Harbor Policy, providing input an
educating students on available resources. She also has coached youth field hockey, at the Relentless Field Hockey Club, the Panthers Field Hockey Club and the ADK Field Hockey Club.
Q & A
What was the hardest obstacle you faced as a student-athlete?
While completing my Master's in Chemistry I was teaching general chemistry labs and courses, taking challenging courses, and working long hours in a research lab all while competing at a high level. It was hard managing my time in order to switch from one task to the next and still accomplish it all.
What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received? The worst?
The best - Life is hard but it's how you respond, adapt, and your attitude that gets you through it and shapes you into the person you're going to be. So work hard, have a good attitude, and never be afraid of change. The worst - I had a coach once tell our team we should all go vegan without instructing us on if we did, how we substitute the nutrients we get from animal products that our body needs to perform. This was terrible advice and a lot of my teammates felt the negative effects since many cut out major nutrients, especially protein, from their diets completely without knowing how to replace them
What accomplishment are you most proud of?
As the first member of my family to complete a college degree, getting my MS in Chemistry is one of my biggest accomplishments. All the long nights working on hw and data workups, trouble-shooting failed experiments, and early mornings at the field or gym were well worth it.
What was your favorite class/professor and why?
My organic chemistry professor, Dr. Ting Wang, at UAlbany, was my all time favorite. He was the first professor to support and challenge me with undergraduate research, was a great professor, and an even better mentor. He's a large reason as to why I decided to continue on with graduate level research.
What are the top three things on your bucket list?
Visit all the U.S. National Parks, travel across Europe, visit all 50 states
How has the changing environment within the NCAA with new transfer rules and NIL impacted your experience?
As a graduate transfer myself, I took advantage of the transfer portal after my graduation from UAlbany. I was able to find a new home that was a top 50 research university in the country and allowed me to continue to compete at a high level. VCU has tremendous support and resources for its athletes!
What do you think is the most important issue for student-athletes today?
I think student athletes need to be able to take advantage of all the opportunities presented to them. We're fortunate to be able to play the sport(s) we love and be given support both athletically and academically in order for us to reach our full potential. Many schools now have great mental health, leadership, and career services for their athletes, though many athletes either don't know about them or don't utilize these resources.
