TOWSON, Md. – University of South Carolina Aiken senior baseball student-athlete Bill Gerstenslager has been selected to the 2013 Capital One Academic All-America Division II Baseball Team.
The Capital One Academic All-America program is selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Gerstenslager was a First-Team Academic All-American at designated hitter. Gerstenslager is USC Aiken's 12 CoSIDA Academic All-American. He is the second so far in the 2012-13 athletic year as USC Aiken senior volleyball student-athlete Samantha Lukralle (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst HS) was tabbed to the 2012 Capital One Academic All-America Division II Volleyball Team.
Last year, USC Aiken senior golfer Matt Atkins (Owensboro, Ky./Henderson State) was chosen to the 2012 Capital One Academic All-America Division II Men's At-Large Team. After winning his second straight Academic All-Region honors earlier this month, Atkins is also eligible for Capital One Academic All-America Division II Men's At-Large Team honors this year. The Capital One Academic All-America Division II Men's At-Large Team will be unveiled on Wednesday, June 5.
The Academic All-American honor concludes an impressive senior season for Gerstenslager.
A First-Team Daktronics All-American, Gerstenslager (Solon, Ohio/Mercyhurst) led the Pacers with a team-best .380 (81-for-213) batting average.
He was tops among all Pacers and the Peach Belt Conference with 21 doubles on the 2013 season. The 21 doubles are currently in the top-10 in the nation.
The Pacer designated hitter led USC Aiken with 30 extra-base hits on the year with the 21 doubles, seven home runs and two triples. He collected 127 bases and scored 53 runs to go along with his 54 RBIs.
A Tino Martinez Award semifinalist and a Daktronics First-Team All-Region selection, Gerstenslager was also recently named to the NCBWA All-Southeast Region Second-Team, the ABCA All-Southeast Region Second-Team, the Peach Belt Conference All-Conference First-Team, the Peach Belt Conference All-Academic Team and the Capital One Academic NCAA Division II Baseball District Three First-Team.
Gerstenslager is the second Pacer baseball player to garner Academic All-America honors, joining USC Aiken Athletic Hall of Fame member Ashley Farr, who was named to the Academic All-America team in 2003. In addition to his Academic All-America honors, Farr was also named a First-Team All-American by the ABCA in 2003.
In the classroom, Gerstenslager owns a 3.756 grade point average as a Business Administration major.
To be eligible for Academic All-America® consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director.
Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 16,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
The eleven members of the Capital One Academic All-America® Division II Baseball First-Team combined for a 3.85 grade point average.
For more information about the Academic All-America® Teams program, please visit www.cosida.com.
