2023 CSC Baseball Academic All-Americans
SEWARD, Neb. – Named Academic All-District honorees in mid-May, fifth-year Concordia University Baseball program standouts Ben Berg and Jesse Garcia were recognized as 2023 NAIA Academic All-America® First Team award winners, as selected by College Sports Communicators (CSC). The organization announced the honorees on Wednesday (June 7). Berg is the lone catcher listed on the first team while Garcia is one of five infielders nationally to garner first team accolades.
The 2022-23 Academic All-America® Baseball Teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom. Student-athletes must achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher in order to be nominated for this award. The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA — for each gender.
A 2023 First Team All-GPAC and GPAC Gold Glove recipient, Berg thrived in his fifth season as a member of the program. In 56 games this past season, Berg hit .406 (76-for-187) with 16 doubles, 10 home runs, 50 RBIs, a .497 on-base percentage and .676 slugging percentage. He made only two errors all season (.995 fielding percentage) and nailed 11 baserunners attempting to steal. A three-time All-GPAC performer and NAIA Scholar-Athlete, Berg totaled 193 hits, 39 doubles, 27 home runs and 148 RBIs while batting .321 with a .523 slugging percentage for his career. Berg is the program’s all-time leader in putouts (1,385) and fielding percentage (.992). He graduated this May with a Bachelor of Science in Education with a focus in Secondary Education and Physical Education.
Garcia enjoyed the best season of his career in 2023 and rose to First Team All-GPAC status. He’s been honored as an Academic All-District choice four times. The El Cajon, Calif., native also garnered four All-GPAC mentions in his career. In 58 games this past season, Garcia is hit .373 (78-for-209) with 50 runs, 15 doubles, 17 home runs and 67 RBIs to go along with a .451 on-base percentage and .699 slugging percentage. The NAIA Scholar-Athlete owns program career records for games played (239), hits (270), doubles (59), RBIs (216) and walks (119). Garcia earned his degree from Concordia in Criminal Justice and is pursuing his Master of Business Administration. Both Berg and Garcia played in four national tournaments and were part of three separate teams that won GPAC championships.
Concordia Baseball Academic All-District honorees
Jake Adams (2017)
Ben Berg (2022, *2023)
Nathan Buckallew (*2021)
Jesse Garcia (2020, 2021, 2022, *2023)
Jaydee Jurgensen (2015)
Nick Little (*2018, *2020, *2021)
Ty Nekoliczak (2023)
Jaidan Quinn (2023)
Thomas Sautel (*2020)
*Academic All-American