April 24, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - With less than three months to go in the Penn State Alumni Challenge for Former Student-Athletes, teams are getting ready to make a late-season push to climb into the top two prize-winning spots. The race for the two $6,000 prizes is coming down to the wire, but it's not too late for teams to make a playoff run and earn additional funds for their former programs.
The competition is especially heating up for the first prize for the highest percentage of former student-athletes who represent their team in supporting Penn State Athletics. Football is in first place with 33.94 percent of alumni making gifts to the program, but Women's Soccer is right on their heels with 33.8 percent participation. Not far behind are Men's Hockey (30.39 percent), Men's Lacrosse (25.18 percent), and Women's Ice Hockey (23.26 percent).
Nearly every Penn State team has seen an increase in alumni support when compared to last year's numbers, putting pressure on the current leaders for the second prize. This $6,000 prize will go to the team with the highest percentage increase of former student-athlete donors over last year. Women's Soccer is a little more secure in these standings, holding the top spot with 16.9 percent increase in giving, followed by Men's Lacrosse (10.56 percent increase), Field Hockey (7.97 percent increase), Women's Basketball (6.54 percent increase), and Women's Gymnastics (5 percent increase).
Overall, alumni are still supporting their teams in even greater numbers than last year. More than 2,300 former student-athletes have contributed to Penn State Athletics so far this year, more than had supported Penn State Athletics in all of last year. New donors continue to make a strong showing in the challenge; more than one-third of this year's donors are making their first gift to Penn State Athletics.
With only a few months left to go, the Penn State Alumni Challenge for Former Student-Athletes looks to be coming to a buzzer-beater finish. Be sure to support your sport before the challenge ends on June 30, 2013! To see your team's results, go to the Alumni Challenge Graph.
Penn State Men's Hockey coach, Guy Gadowsky, is excited about the challenge and what it means to his coaching staff, his players, and alumni: "The challenge shows what it means to be a Penn Stater. I continue to express to my team what it means to be a part of the Penn State Hockey family. Over the past year, it is truly humbling to see the support from our former student-athletes. As seen by the number of former student-athletes that have joined the challenge, this is a great way for our alumni to continue to compete for their team even after their playing days are over. So far, there have been many changes in the leaderboard, and I look forward to the race to the finish."
To learn more about this challenge and to stay up-to-date on the progress, visit the Varsity `S' Club website and Varsity `S' Facebook page.
Make your sport-specific gift today. As a former student-athlete, 100 percent of your donation can go to your program while receiving all Nittany Lion Club benefits.
To support your team online, please click on the sport-specific link below.
Softball
Women's Ice Hockey
Women's Golf
Wrestling
Women's Volleyball
Men's Volleyball
Women's Tennis
Men's Tennis
Women's Swimming and Diving
Men's Swimming and Diving
Women's Soccer
Men's Soccer
Women's Lacrosse
Men's Lacrosse
Men's Ice Hockey
Women's Gymnastics
Men's Gymnastics
Men's Golf
Football
Field Hockey
Women's Fencing
Men's Fencing
Women's Track & Field/Cross Country
Men's Track & Field/Cross Country
Women's Basketball
Men's Basketball
Baseball