Oct. 30, 2008
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For the second time in his Nittany Lion career, senior midfielder Ryan Badaracco (Wexford, Pa.), has been selected to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II First Team in recognition of his standout efforts on the soccer field and in the classroom. He will now advance to the national ballot and have the opportunity to earn academic all-America honors.
Badaracco, a team co-captain for the 2008 season, has continued the Penn State men's soccer tradition of academic excellence, graduating with honors in the spring with a degree in finance and an impressive 3.92 grade point average. He was also an ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District First Team honoree in 2006. In total, Nittany Lions have been named to academic all-region or all-America teams on 26 occasions.
A player with unmatched work ethic, Ryan Badaracco has returned from a knee injury that cost him the entire 2007 to start every game and log nearly 1400 minutes of playing time this year. A starter of 49 career games whose versatility has allowed him to play both in the midfield and on the back line, Badaracco has totaled two goals and one assist. Most notably, he scored the first goal of his collegiate career in Penn State's thrilling 2-1 double overtime victory over Northwestern at the 2006 Big Ten Championship, securing him a spot on the all-tournament team.
Badaracco was also Penn State's 2006 recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, an honor bestowed on one player from each team in the conference who best reflects the principles of sportsmanship and fair play established by the Big Ten.
The Nittany Lions finish out their brief two-game home stand this weekend when Big Ten rival No. 17 Indiana (9-4-3, 2-2-0 Big Ten) travels to Happy Valley for a 7 p.m. match on Sat., Nov. 1. Penn State has taken three of the last five match-ups from the Hoosiers, including the teams' previous meeting in University Park in 2006, a 1-0 victory. Senior Night will be celebrated with Badaracco, Andy Machi (Upper St. Clair, Pa.), and Barkley Miller (New Freedom, Pa.) being honored in a special ceremony.