Oct. 30, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - Penn State Lady Lion senior guard Maggie Lucas (Narberth, Pa.) has been selected as one of the 30 candidates for the 2013-14 Senior CLASS Award, given to the student-athletes that have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Each of the 30 candidate classes will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one male candidate and one female candidate who best exemplify excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.
On the court, Lucas added several honors to her trophy case during an outstanding junior campaign, including Big Ten Player of the Year, Wade Trophy Finalist, Wooden Award Finalist, USBWA All-America, Associated Press All-America second team, Full Court Press All-America second team, WBCA All-America honorable mention and Big Ten All-Tournament team. She was third in the Big Ten in scoring (20.1), third in free throw percentage (.900), sixth in steals (2.3) and second in three-point field goals made (3.1). Additionally, Lucas led the Big Ten and was fourth nationally in three-point field goal percentage with a .462 mark, which was also the second-best single-season mark in school history. Lucas enters her final season in Happy Valley seventh in program history with 1,838 points and is on pace to become the fifth member of Penn State's 2,000-point club. She also ranks second in Penn State history and third in Big Ten history with 292 career three-pointers made.
Off the court, Lucas has been involved in several community service projects in her time at Penn State. Among her community service experiences, Lucas has painted houses as part of the United Way Day of Caring, volunteered at local elementary schools and the YMCA, worked our annual Special Olympics Basketball Clinic, helped at several local organizations, including Pets Come First and the State College Area Food Bank. Lucas and the Lady Lions are also very active in the Pink Zone (Play 4 Kay) initiative to raise money for breast cancer awareness and research. In six Pink Zone events, the Lady Lions have donated more than $825,000 to breast cancer causes and Lucas has been played a roll in helping to raise funds by attending various fundraising events (Hoop Shoot, Little Black Dress Goes Pink, etc.).
In the classroom, Lucas is a Recreation, Park and Tourism Management major and was an Academic All-Big Ten selection in 2012. She will be interning in the events/public relations office at the Bryce Jordan Center in the spring semester.
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2014 NCAA Men's Final Four® and NCAA Women's Final Four®.
For more information on all the candidates, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.
Penn State opens its season against St. Francis (Pa.) on Fri., Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. The Lady Lions will raise their 2013 Big Ten Championship banner and give away commemorative championship ring banks to celebrate back-to-back Big Ten titles. The Lady Lions also face Fordham on Sun., Nov. 10 at 2 p.m. to close out opening weekend.
Lady Lion Basketball single-game and season tickets are available by calling 1-800-NITTANY. Single-game tickets are $15 and $12 for adults and seniors and $9 and $7 for youth (12 and younger). Season tickets are $99 for adults and $50 for youth (12 and under), this includes a Nittany Lion Kids Club Membership for 2013-14. New this year, the Lady Lions have introduced a Family Season Ticket package. For $200, fans will get two adult tickets and two youth tickets for the 2013-14 campaign. The PNC Flex Books are available again this year for $99. The Flex Book gives fans 12 vouchers, 10 that can be redeemed in any combination for Nittany Lion and Lady Lion Basketball tickets throughout the year and two extra vouchers for the Nittany Lions' Coaches Vs. Cancer game and the Lady Lions' Pink Zone game.
The 2014 Pink Zone at Penn State will take place on Sunday, Feb. 16 as the Lady Lions take on Wisconsin in the Bryce Jordan Center at 1 p.m. Last year, the Lady Lions donated a record $260,000 to breast cancer causes. This year's fundraising efforts will benefit the Mount Nittany Medical Center, Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute, Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital and Lewistown Hospital. For more information on the Pink Zone at Penn State, visit the official Pink Zone website at www.pennsylvaniapinkzone.org.
The Lady Lions are on Twitter. Follow sports information contact Kris Petersen (@ladylionsid) and the Lady Lions and coaches (@pennstatewbb) to get the inside scoop. The Lady Lions are also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstateladylions.
2013-14 Senior CLASS Women's Basketball Candidates
Gennifer Brandon, California
Heather Butler, Tennessee-Martin
Alyssa Charlston, Idaho
Hallie Christofferson, Iowa State
Jerica Coley, Florida International
Allyson DiMagno, Cornell
Alexis Dobbs, American
Stefanie Dolson, Connecticut
Jamierra Faulkner, Southern Mississippi
Ataira Franklin, Virginia
Chelsea Gray, Duke
Sarah Hansen, Florida Gulf Coast
Cassie Harberts, Southern California
Jordan Hooper, Nebraska
Natasha Howard, Florida State
Amanda Hyde, IPFW
MAGGIE LUCAS, PENN STATE
Dequesha McClanahan, Winthrop
Sarah Nelson, Creighton
Eilise O'Connor, Missouri-Kansas
Chiney Ogwumike, Stanford
Haley Peters, Duke
Theresa Plaisance, LSU
Michelle Plouffe, Utah
Odyssey Sims, Baylor
Alex Smith, Holy Cross
Kacie Sowell, Seattle
DeNesha Stallworth, Kentucky
Rachel Tecca, Akron
Alli Wiliams, Saint Francis