UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State senior student-athletes Kerry Abello (women's soccer) and John Harrar (men's basketball) were among the 28 honorees named Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2020-21 academic year. The pair were chosen from a group of 350 students honored throughout the academic year who had displayed positive sportsmanship.
One member of each varsity sports team on every campus was chosen by his or her institution as a Sportsmanship Award honoree, and two Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners were then selected from each institution. All of the Sportsmanship Award winners have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In addition, these honorees must be in good academic standing and must have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Kerry Abello
Senior Kerry Abello has been a versatile student-athlete for the Nittany Lions, playing every position in her career at Penn State while helping the team to three Big Ten Championship titles.
On the pitch, Abello has been part of the Nittany Lions' 62 wins and has tallied five game-winning goals during her career. She is a two-time All-Big Ten honoree as well as a two-time United Soccer Coaches All-North Region honoree.
In the classroom, Abello has twice earned CoSIDA Academic All-America accolades (2018, 2019). She is also a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and two-time Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honoree. In spring 2021, Abello was tabbed as a Senior CLASS second-team All-American. Abello was also named a recipient of the 2020-21 Big Ten Medal of Honor last week.
John Harrar
Senior forward John Harrar epitomizes the Penn State values and what it means to be a student-athlete.
Harrar served as a true leader for the men's basketball team in a season unlike any other in 2020-21. He consistently brought a strong leadership presence and outstanding work ethic that was praised by opposing coaches and national media alike.
The forward earned his first career all-conference honor during his senior season, collecting All-Big Ten honorable mention accolades after leading the Nittany Lions with 8.8 rebounds per game and a 54.9 field goal percentage.
Harrar is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection who graduated in May with a bachelor's degree in management from Penn State's Smeal College of Business. He also served as a member of the team's leadership council and is a two-time Big Ten Sportsmanship Award selection.
Harrar announced his intent to return to Penn State for the 2021-22 season and utilize the extra year of eligibility granted by NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Penn State Ranked in Top 25 in Learfield Directors' Cup Midseason Standings
Following the fall and winter athletic seasons, Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics stands in the top 25 in the Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup Division I standings with a No. 22 ranking. Penn State was led by the fencing and wrestling programs which finished as the nation's second-ranked team.
Also adding points for the Nittany Lions were the men's gymnastics program who sent eight gymnasts to the NCAA Championships en route to a No. 7 ranking, the women's gymnastics program who boasted four individual NCAA Regional qualifiers and the men's swimming and diving program who had five athletes earn All-America honorable mention honors at the NCAA Championships.
The Directors' Cup awards points based on success at NCAA postseason events. The final Division I Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup standings spring update with be published on July 2, following the conclusion of the College World Series.
Penn State is among only nine institutions nationwide to have finished in the Top 25 in all 26 Learfield Directors' Cup final standings.
Record-Breaking NCAA Graduation Success Rate
The Nittany Lions recorded a fourth consecutive record academic performance with a 92 percent graduation success rate, according to data reported by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The NCAA's annual graduation rates report of Division I institutions across the nation revealed Penn State student-athletes at the University Park campus earned a Graduate Success Rate (GSR) of 92 percent to break the school's all-time record of 91, which was previously set in the 2019 NCAA report. Nittany Lion students posted a 92 percent graduation rate compared to the 88 percent average for all Division I institutions for students entering from 2010-11 through the 2013-14 academic year.
Penn State student-athletes have logged a GSR in the 88-92 percent range during each of the past 14 NCAA reports, improving from 88 percent in the 2015 report to a record-breaking 92 percent report in 2020.
Sixteen of the Nittany Lions' 27 teams (men's and women's track and field/cross country teams combined) earned a GSR at or above the Division I national GSR average for their respective sport. A total of 17 Penn State squads have a GSR of 90 percent or higher.
Penn State Among the Nation's Most Comprehensive and Successful Athletic Programs
Under the leadership of Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour, Penn State has one of the nation's most comprehensive and successful athletic programs, featuring 800 student-athletes across 31 varsity programs (16 men's, 15 women's). The Nittany Lions' 31 programs are tied for the fourth-highest number of sports sponsored by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) institution.
