Award-winning sports journalist and former Lady Lions basketball player Lisa Salters will serve as this year’s Homecoming Grand Marshal, the organization announced Sunday night at Rec Hall as part of Be A Part From The Start.

Salters earned her bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism from Penn State in 1988. She also played for the Lady Lions women’s basketball team from 1986 to 1987.

Following her graduation, Salters worked as a reporter for Baltimore’s NBC affiliate and later worked for ABC’s NewsOne on a number of broadcasts, including World News Tonight. She covered stories like the O.J. Simpson trials and the crash of TWA Flight 800.

Salters joined ESPN in 2000 and covered the 2002 FIFA World Cup, reported from the 2004 summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, and hosted the 2006 winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. Since 2006, she has worked as an NBA sideline reporter for ESPN and ABC, covering NBA Saturday Primetime and NBA Sunday Showcase games.

She was named a sideline reporter for Monday Night Football in 2012 and recently became part of the new Monday Night Football commentating team to provide sideline coverage during the upcoming season.

Salters earned a 2017 Sports Emmy Award for documenting the life of transgender high school athlete Matt Dawkins in “Life as Matt,” a 2009 Gracie Award for Best Feature from the Association for Women in Radio and Television, and a Sports Emmy nomination for her 2008 story on organ donation, “Ray of Hope.”

“Our goal when choosing a Grand Marshal is to select a Penn State alum who has made an impact not just during their time here at Penn State, but also long after graduation,” Homecoming Alumni Relations Director Sarah Liepham said. “Lisa Salters was a clear choice due to her numerous achievements in journalism and devotion to delivering quality news stories to audiences for decades. We are thrilled to welcome Lisa back home for Homecoming 2018.”

Homecoming 2018 is slated for October 7-13, culminating in the home football game against Michigan State on Saturday. The theme of this year’s celebration is “Guide State Forward.”

The Grand Marshal will be present at many of Homecoming’s events throughout the week and will be featured in the parade Friday night. Students will have the opportunity to meet Salters at Homecoming’s Ice Cream Social, held from 1 to 3 p.m. Friday, October 12 at Hintz Alumni Center.