Dec. 1, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State is just one of 97 schools nationwide to have both its men's and women's soccer program earn the NSCAA Team Academic Award for the 2008-09 academic year. In order to receive recognition for the honor, teams must carry an aggregate grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
The Penn State women's soccer team landed on the NSCAA Academic Team Awards list for the second time overall and for the first time since 2007. The squad posted an impressive 3.44 overall grade-point average.
Notably, seniors Melissa Hayes (Cave Creek, Ariz.) Katie Schoepfer (Waterford, Conn.) and Alyssa Naeher (Seymour, Conn.) posted outstanding GPAs. Hayes was tops on the team at 3.88 as a communications arts and sciences major, while Schoepfer (3.38) and Naeher (3.33) major in human development and family studies and kinesiology, respectively.
Schoepfer was recognized for her strong play and efforts in the classroom by being named to the ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District II Second Team this year.
The women's squad was one of seven Big Ten representatives, which included Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, and Purdue. The Nittany Lions had the highest GPA of all those teams.
The men's team posted a grade point average of 3.17 for the 2008-09 academic year, becoming just one of three Big Ten programs to be recognized by the NSCAA. Penn State, which has a roster that boasts 10 Academic All-Big Ten honorees, is one of 141 men's soccer teams spanning all divisions to qualify for the academic award.
In November, senior forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) was honored on the 2009 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® First Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Awarded in recognition for achievements earned both on the field and in the classroom, Yeisley became the second Nittany Lion soccer player to be named to the ESPN The Magazine first team in the last two years, as midfielder Ryan Badaracco was a 2008 honoree. In addition, redshirt junior defender Andy Parr (Hummelstown, Pa.) was selected to the Academic All-District Second Team.
Yeisley (3.61 GPA), a management major, and Parr (3.89 GPA), an actuarial science major, each maintain exceptional grade point averages in his chosen field of study, continuing the Penn State men's soccer tradition of academic excellence. In total, Nittany Lions have been named to academic/scholar all-region/district or all-America teams on 39 occasions.