Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1538407
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 5 15 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Florence Caron — Women's Track and Field Caron was named a first-team Academic All- American by the College Sports Communica- tors in July. A senior linguistics major from La Malbaie, Quebec, Caron has maintained a 4.0 grade point average while also turning in six All-America performances in her career as a distance-running standout for the cross country and track teams. The owner of school records in the indoor and outdoor 5,000-meter races, as well as the outdoor 10K, Caron became only the second PSU women's track and field athlete to receive first-team Academic All-America recognition. She joined hammer thrower Jennifer Leatherman, who was saluted in 2006. Jackson Smith — Men's Ice Hockey Smith, an incoming freshman defenseman, be- came the highest NHL draft choice in the history of Penn State's program when he was chosen 14th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in June. Smith committed to PSU on June 15, just 12 days before becoming the first Nittany Lion ever to be selected in the first round. A native of Calgary, Alberta, he spent the past two-plus seasons with the Tri-City Americans of the Western Hockey League. He was one of two Penn Staters to be chosen in the 2025 draft, with sophomore forward Charlie Cerrato going to the Carolina Hurri- canes in the second round with the No. 49 overall pick. Izzy Starck — Women's Volleyball The Nittany Lions' standout sophomore setter received preseason All-Big Ten notice and was also one of two Penn Staters on the American Volley- ball Coaches Association's Player of the Year watch list. Starck is coming off a sensational debut season in which she started all 37 matches and led Penn State to a 35-2 record and a national championship. The Viera, Fla., native received second-team All-America honors and was the Big Ten's Freshman of the Year in 2024. She was joined on the AVCA's watch list by junior right-side hitter Kennedy Martin. Both were preseason All-Big Ten honorees, as was senior libero Gillian Grimes. Carter Starocci — Wrestling Starocci was named the Big Ten Jesse Owens Male Athlete of the Year in July after wrapping up his college career by becoming the first Division I wrestler ever to win five national championships. Starocci defeated Northern Iowa's Parker Keckeisen in the NCAA final at 184 pounds in March, capping a 26-0 season that also included his third Big Ten championship. Starocci concluded his five-year career with a 104-4 record, including 20 falls, 25 technical falls and 21 major decisions. He became the fourth Penn Stater to be saluted as the Big Ten's top male athlete, joining gymnast Luis Vargas (2005) and wrestlers David Taylor (2014) and Bo Nickal (2019). — Matt Herb PENN STATE'S TOP PERFORMERS BLUEWHITEILLUSTRATED.COM Renews for $9.99/month (billed annually) • Offer valid for new members only FEATURING: ✦ NEXT-GENERATION PLAYER DATABASE ✦ RECRUITING SCOOP ✦ DAILY TEAM COVERAGE ✦ STRONG COMMUNITY ✦ CONVENIENT MOBILE APP! ✦ MONTHLY OPTION AVAILABLE Join at BlueWhiteIllustrated.com! NOTE: BlueWhiteIllustrated.com is the companion site to Blue White Illustrated magazine. It is a separate subscription and is NOT included with the magazine. All offers are subject to change. Please check the website for current pricing and specials. $1 FOR 7 DAYS $1 FOR 7 DAYS