NATIONAL RELEASE

MALIBU, Calif. - The CoSIDA Academic All-District Baseball Teams were announced this week and two Pepperdine players earned spots on the District 8 squad. The Waves' Matt Crowder and Aaron Barnett both earned first-team honors.

The CoSIDA Academic All-District program recognizes student-athletes for their achievement both athletically and in the classroom. Honorees must have at least a 3.30 GPA and be significant contributors to their team on the field.

Crowder (Atherton, Calif.//BYU) earned his spot on the District 8 first team as a designated hitter after posting a 3.98 GPA as an economics major at Pepperdine. His GPA is the second highest on the District 8 team. Crowder has played 21 games as a redshirt junior for the Waves this season, totaling 13 hits and 10 runs scored. He has made 12 starts for the Waves.

Barnett (Mission Viejo, Calif./Capistrano Valley HS) posted a 3.79 GPA also as an economics major, earning his spot on the academic squad as a catcher. The Waves' junior backstop has the third highest batting average on the team, hitting .294 thus far this season, and has the most doubles on the squad with 12. Barnett has three homers, 16 RBI and 21 runs scored on the year. It is his second straight year earning Academic All-District honors.

This year is the first time the Waves have had two players selected to the Academic All-District first team. First-team Academic All-District honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month.