UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Six Penn State women's soccer players garnered College Sports Communicators Academic All-District accolades, the organization announced Tuesday afternoon.
CSC seeks to honor and celebrate student-athletes who represent the highest caliber of academic and athletic achievement through the annual Academic All-District and Academic All-America programs. The Nittany Lions placed senior defender Eva Alonso, graduate goalkeeper Katherine Asman, senior+ midfielder Cori Dyke, senior+ forward Payton Linnehan, senior+ defender Kate Wiesner and senior midfielder Natalie Wilson on the esteemed list. Alonso, Asman, Dyke, Wiesner and Wilson earned back-to-back appearances after appearing on the team a year ago.
A native of Madrid, Spain, Alonso's efforts in the holding midfield for the Nittany Lions have been instrumental to the program's success over the course of the 2023 season. The veteran has started in 21 of Penn State's 22 matches played this season and leads the attack in assists with seven dishes this year, a single-season career-best mark. Alonso owns nine points on the season split between her seven assists and a goal scored against Indiana in the B1G Tournament Quarterfinals. In the classroom, Alonso maintains an impressive 3.86 grade point average studying mathematics. She earns her second consecutive CSC Academic All-District nod and owns two prior selections as both a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and Academic All-B1G choice.
Asman has cemented herself as one of the strongest goalkeepers in women's college soccer, booking the best goals-against average in the Big Ten Conference and the 16th-best GAA in Division I with a 0.577 mark between the posts this season. The Roswell, Georgia, native moved into the top three at Penn State in multiple statistical categories this season, including career saves, shutouts and goalkeeper minutes played while ranking fourth in school history in career victories. In the classroom, she maintains a 3.96 GPA while pursuing her master's in business administration from the prestigious Penn State Smeal College of Business. Asman is a three-time Academic All-B1G choice and a four-time Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, additionally earning her second career appearance on the CSC Academic All-District Team after being selected last year.
The 2023 Big Ten Conference Defender of the Year, Dyke has helped spearhead PSU's resurgence in the national conversation while leading the Blue & White to its first national quarterfinal berth since 2018 this season. The Littleton, Colorado, native set multiple program records this year, moving into first place at PSU all-time in matches played and matches started, booking 107 appearances and starts through PSU's NCAA third-round match against Saint Louis. A team captain and key motivator for the Nittany Lions, Dyke is also a standout in the classroom and in the community. Her cumulative grade point average of 3.960 in kinesiology is one of the highest marks on the PSU roster, highlighted by three straight selections to the Academic All-B1G Team and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar lists while picking up CSC Academic All-District laurels in each of the past two years.
Fresh off one of her most dominant individual performances of the year, Linnehan books her first career appearance on the CSC Academic All-District Team in the 2023 campaign. The Douglas, Massachusetts, native paces Penn State in both total points and goals scored, adding 24 points and 10 goals scored with an additional four assists. Linnehan has tallied three match-winning goals this season, with two coming in the last three NCAA Tournament matches. In the classroom, Linnehan boasts a 3.65 GPA in psychology at Penn State and has been selected to the Academic All-B1G team on three occasions alongside an appearance as a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar recognition last year.
Wiesner, a native of Monrovia, California, saw continued success on the pitch and in the classroom over the course of the 2023 campaign. The veteran outside back has played in 20 matches, making 19 starts while ranking tied for seventh on the squad in total scoring with nine points. Wiesner has scored a pair of goals on the season and has added five assists overall this year. A powerful presence in the classroom and in the community, Wiesner owns a spectacular 3.91 cumulative grade point average in her Human Development and Family Studies postgraduate program, coupled with an identical 3.91 mark in her undergraduate journalism program. Wiesner is a three-time B1G Distinguished Scholar and a three-time selection to the Academic All-B1G team, also landing her second career appearance on the CSC Academic All-District list.
A native of Fairfax, Virginia, Wilson rounds out the list of six Nittany Lion student-athletes who brought home recognition from the CSC this season, booking her second appearance after being selected a year ago. Wilson has been a key contributor to the Penn State program over the past few seasons and has appeared in every match for the Blue & White this year, logging 22 appearances with 19 starts and two assists. She maintains a 3.94 GPA in Bio Behavioral Health at Penn State and has been recognized as a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and Academic All-B1G selection on two prior occasions.
Penn State returns to the pitch this Saturday, Nov. 25, as the fifth-ranked and second-seeded Nittany Lions square off against the seventh-ranked and top-seeded Clemson Tigers in the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship quarterfinals. PSU hits the road to visit Riggs Field on the campus of Clemson University, with kickoff slated for 1 p.m. (ET). The match will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via ESPN+.
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Visit GoPSUSports.com for more information on Penn State women's soccer. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion women's soccer team on X and Instagram @PennStateWSOC, in addition to the team's Facebook page at /PSUWomensSoccer.
The 30th Season of Penn State women's soccer is presented by the Smeal College of Business.
