TOWSON, Md. - The Landmark Conference selects 22 senior scholar-athletes each year to recognize the top student-athlete in each sport based on academics and athletics.
The honorees must have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.20 and are selected by a committee of Landmark Conference officers, athletics directors, senior woman administrators, faculty athletic representatives, and sports information directors.
Harrison Neal becomes the fourth Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year selection for the Drew swimming & diving program and the second for the men’s team, joining Matheus Macena C’21, who captured the same award in 2021.
A business and computer science double major, Neal recently completed an outstanding four-year career in which he garnered nine Landmark Conference titles and six school records, including individual marks in the 200-freestyle (1:42.75), 200-breaststroke (2:07.38), and 400-IM (4:08.39). He also concludes his career as a member of three different school-record relay teams (200-medley, 400-medley, 800-freestyle). He has been an integral part of a team that has finished second at the Landmark Conference Championships in each of the past three years.
At the Landmark Conference Championships this past season, Neal swam the breaststroke leg of the 200-medley relay squad that established both a meet and conference record with a winning time of 1:32.10. In addition, he swam on the 400-medley relay team that captured the Landmark Conference title and was a part of both the 400- and 800-freestyle relays that earned silver medals.
In addition, Neal captured runner-up honors in the 200-IM and broke the school record with his third-place showing in the 200-breaststroke (2:07.38). Neal also broke the Drew record in the 200-freestyle with his leadoff leg of the 800-freestyle relay. He helped lead the Rangers to establish a team record for the most points scored (689) at the Landmark Conference Championships.
Away from the pool, Neal performed an internship as an investment bank summer analyst for Deutsch Bank this past summer. A Dean’s List student every semester, he carries a 4.0 grade point average, and has been inducted into the National Economics Honor Society and is the recipient of the Gilbert Family Scholarship, awarded to the most outstanding scholar in mathematics, computer science, and physics.
Neal has also been heavily involved in campus activities and has served as the lead analyst for The Fund, Drew’s student-run portfolio. He has also been the chair of the Dining Concerns Committee and the vice president of the Drew Economics and Business Society. In addition, he is an international ambassador for the international student orientation.
A native of Wellington, New Zealand, Neal is the first student from his country to attend Drew University.