Victor Ficarra Named Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar

MEDIA, Pa. – Penn State Brandywine senior student-athlete Victor Ficarra (Glenmoore, Pa./Downingtown STEM Academy) was selected to the Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Men's Tennis First Team on Tuesday.

Ficarra is the third Brandywine student-athlete to receive the Arthur Ashe award since 2016. Women's soccer student-athlete Brianna Banks was a two-time award winner, while men's basketball's Anthony Lattanzi earned recognition in 2017-18.

Sponsored by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education Magazine, the Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar awards honor undergraduate students who have excelled in the classroom as well as on the athletic field. Inspired by tennis legend Arthur Ashe, Jr.'s commitment to education as well as his love for the game of tennis, the magazine has selected the top minority student-athletes who have completed at least two semesters at their institution and hold a grade-point average of 3.20 or higher every year since 1992.

A men's tennis team captain, Ficarra was a four-year player for the Lions. He recorded 24 career victories, including eight singles triumphs and 16 doubles wins. Ficarra was also a member of the men's basketball team during his final year at Brandywine.

A Schreyer Honors Scholar, Ficarra owns a 3.73 GPA and will be graduating Saturday with a business degree. Ficarra will be one of the two student speakers during the graduation ceremony.

During his four years at Brandywine, Ficarra has also earned three USCAA National Academic Team awards and is a three-time PSUAC All-Academic Team selection.

An active member of campus, Ficarra has served as president of the Lion Ambassadors, worked as a peer tutor and was a member of the Sustainovation Club. As a sophomore, Ficarra took first place at Brandywine's annual Exhibition of Undergraduate Research Enterprise and Creative Accomplishment (EURECA) in the enterprise category.

Ficarra was one of 10 honorees on the first team in men's tennis. He was the lone representative from a non-NCAA Division I or Division II institution.