NATCHITOCHES -- Northwestern State baseball standout Mike Jaworski received his 2008 ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America Team plaque in a ceremony Saturday evening at Turpin Stadium

Jaworski earned second-team Academic All-America recognition last May by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Jaworski, a 2007 graduate who played as a graduate student last spring, is now coaching in south Louisiana. He was given his plaque in a pregame ceremony before the NSU football game last Saturday, congratulated by NSU academic coordinator for athletics Jodie Heinicka, athletics director Greg Burke and head baseball coach J.P. Davis during the on-field presentation.

He joined fellow Demons Bobby Barbier (2004), Terry Joseph (1993 and 1995), and Ryan Anholt (1999) as the only Northwestern State baseball players to be named to the prestigious NCAA Division I Academic All-America team.

The award was the 12^th Academic All-America honor for a Northwestern student-athlete and third since 2004.  Joining Jaworski and fellow baseball stars Barbier, Joseph, and Anholt are former softball players Nicole Martin (2005), Annie Johnston (2002), and Maureen Cracik (1986), tennis star Karen Patel (1991), and football players Guy Hedrick (1992) and John Dippel (1993, 1994).

Elected to the 2008 team along with players from Florida State, Notre Dame, Georgia, Kentucky, St. John’s, and Arizona State, Jaworski was the only player from the state of Louisiana and the Southland Conference to be listed on any of the three teams.  He earned first team Academic-All District honors in District XI, covering New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, to advance to the national ballot. A COSIDA committee votes on Academic All-America.

A native of Houston, Jaworski received his bachelor’s degree in business administration in the spring of 2007 and was playing and pursuing his master’s degree in sport administration while carrying a 3.81 cumulative grade point average.

He helped the 2008 Demons to a 28-28 overall record and a second place finish in the Southland Conference East Division with a 17-12 mark as well as an appearance in the league’s postseason tournament.  The Demons were in the hunt for the division title up until the final two games of the season.

Jaworski, earned All-SLC third team honors this season after hitting .332 with team highs in home runs (15) and runs batted in (46).  He flirted with becoming NSU’s first triple-crown winner since 1999 and with 13 stolen bases, was two short of becoming the school’s first-ever 15 home run/15 stolen base player.

Nicknamed "Jaws," he also earned All-Louisiana honors along with a spot on the SLC Baseball All-Academic Team and the SLC's Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll last spring. 

He was named the Louisville Slugger national Hitter of the Week in April after belting five home runs in five games, including a school record three blasts in a game against Texas-San Antonio on April 12.  He was also twice named SLC Hitter of the Week and the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Hitter of the Week.

The Academic All-America Teams program honors 816 male and female student-athletes annually who have succeeded at the highest level on the playing field and in the classroom. Individuals are selected through voting by CoSIDA, the College Sports Information Directors of America; a 2,000-member organization consisted of sports public relations professionals for colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.

To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.20 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing 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 14,000 student-athletes in Division I, II, III and NAIA covering all NCAA championship sports.