UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Penn State women's soccer embodies the meaning of commitment and balance. They represent the renowned Division I soccer team, while also exceeding their academic goals. Not only do they boast the numbers on their jerseys, but the numbers of their outstanding GPAs.
For the past two semesters, women's soccer has finished first out of the 31 Penn State intercollegiate athletic teams with the highest GPA. By utilizing resources such as the Morgan Academic Center, tutoring and prioritizing academics, the women's soccer team makes being a student-athlete at a Division I university look easy.
In the fall, the team had seven players earn a 4.0 GPA including Eva Alonso, Julia Dohle, Cori Dyke, Kerry Abello, Amanda Poorbaugh, Julia Raich and Ally Schlegel, allowing the team to finish on top in terms of GPA rankings out of all Penn State teams.
Of course, achieving a 4.0 while in season was only possible for these athletes with the tremendous support they have at Penn State. By utilizing resources such as the Morgan Academic Center, tutoring and the welcoming support the school offers to athletes, succeeding both in school and on the field was feasible.
"As freshmen we are required to have seven hours a week of study hours at Morgan Academic Center," Raich, a freshman, said. "We usually get more anyway just because it's nice to have a quiet place to study. They have drop-in tutors, group tutors, or you can get them personally for specific classes which I have found very helpful."
The support Penn State offers for student-athletes makes the transition from balancing high school athletics and academics to the collegiate level simple. For Alonso, moving overseas from Spain to play for Penn State with English as her second language was scary enough. However, by utilizing all the support she could get, Alonso managed to maintain a 4.0 even with a language barrier and excelling on the field.
"It was a challenge in every way," Alonso, a sophomore, said. "It's a new country with a new language and a new educational system. Penn State has awesome support, so everything I needed between the help from tutors, the coaches, anything, they just made my life easier. I had to put in the hard work, but it was easier than I thought."
Dyke, a junior who has started in every single game of her career in the Blue and White said it would not be possible for her to balance being a vital player to the team, maintaining a 4.0, while also participating in the U-23 US Women's National team without the help and support Penn State offers.
"The word we use a lot with our team is intentionality," Dyke said. "Obviously it's a lot to manage and I think if you're not intentional about spending your time in these different areas and making sure that everything is taken care of, then it's easy to let things slip."
Alumni Kerry Abello, who recently made her professional debut with the Orlando Pride, was the poster child for what a student-athlete should be during her time at Penn State. Abello dual majored in science and Spanish, was a member of Schreyer Honors College, maintained a 4.0 all throughout college, and has plans to go to medical school to become an orthopedic surgeon while also managing a professional soccer career.
"Kerry is amazing, she is the gold standard student-athlete," Dyke said. "We always call her Dr. Abello. She has been an excellent role model for me in that regard both on the field and off the field, she's one of the hardest workers I know. Seeing her pursue excellence has pushed me to hold myself to the same standard as well."
Abello set the bar high, leading as an example and role model for her teammates to follow. By setting high goals for herself with determination and hard work, she was able to set herself up for a bright future both as an athlete and a future surgeon.
"Well I didn't sleep much that's for sure," she joked. "But I think honestly a lot of it was my coaches and my professors who allowed me to do both. There were definitely times they had to be flexible with me, make exceptions, push deadlines back, because I definitely strung myself a little thin at times. I was trying to do it all, and it was a lot. My professors and my coaches, they all kind of worked with my schedule to make it happen for me so I'm very grateful for their help in it all."
Prioritizing academics with soccer allowed these athletes to become as successful as they were the past two semesters academically. The women's soccer team truly shows the embodiment of what it takes to be a Penn State student-athlete.
