ROSEMONT, Ill. – Penn State men’s gymnastics freshman Shaun Smith has been tabbed as the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Year, the conference offices announced Wednesday afternoon. He becomes the fifth Penn State gymnast to earn Freshman of the Year honors, and the first since Sam Zakutney was recognized in the 2017 season. In addition to Smith’s recognition, junior Landon Simpson was the Penn State representative on the Sportsmanship Award team.
Smith, who is a two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week honoree this season, ranks 28th nationally on floor. His four-score average sits at a 13.350. He sits at 14th nationally on vault, as the team heads into the postseason. His four-sore average sits at 14.100 and owns a season-best score of 14.200 on the event.
Simpson enters his postseason as a College Gymnastics Association regular season All-American on the parallel bars, with a four-score average of 13.800. In addition to his p-bar prowess, he ranks 19th on the pommel horse, 23rd on vault, and has posted the tenth-best score in the all-around this season.
Smith, Simpson, and the rest of the Penn State men’s gymnastics squad hits the road this week at the team travels to Lincoln, Nebraska to compete at the Big Ten Championships. PSU competes first in Friday’s team contest and will look to send individual qualifiers to the finals on Saturday, April 4. Competition for both events will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.