ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) has announced the 2021 All-Central Region teams, which included a trio of First Team All-Region selections for SWOSU Baseball in centerfielder Alex Bedard, first baseman Drew White and utility player Zach Baxley.
   
The D2CCA All-Region teams are voted upon by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) from the region. The Central Region consists of 39 baseball teams from the Northern Sun (15 teams), Mid-America (12 teams) and Great American (12 teams) conferences. In all, 16 teams were represented with seven teams gaining multiple selections.
 
SWOSU is one of five teams with three players earning All-Central Region distinction and they join Central Missouri as the only other team with three First Team selections. This is the second time that SWOSU has had multiple players chosen to the D2CCA All-Central Region team and the first time with three players earning a selection.
 
Bedard picks up his second All-Central Region honor after also earning a spot on the NCBWA team. He was previously named the Great American Conference Player of the Year, First Team All-GAC and he earned a spot on the GAC All-Defensive Team in addition to being named SWOSU's Male Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive spring. As a senior, he hit .396 with 65 hits – including 10 doubles, five triples and six home runs – to go along with 57 runs scored and 37 RBI. In addition, he set a new single-season school record with 31 stolen bases, which ranks second in NCAA Division II, and did so while also recording a .965 fielding percentage while patrolling in center field.
 
White and Baxley both claimed their first All-Central Region nods after excelling for the Bulldogs on the diamond this spring. White led the team with a .406 batting average and previously earned a First Team All-GAC selection after finishing with 13 doubles, five home runs and 47 RBI. Baxley was a Second Team All-GAC pick, and he truly defined his role as a utility player by starting games at five different positions: catcher, first base, second base, third base and shortstop.
 
"This All-Central Region selection is a well-deserved honor for each of these three young men," SWOSU Head Coach Zack Saunders said. "It shows you what hard work, determination and focus can do. We are incredibly proud of these young men and they embody everything that we want in our program."
 
SWOSU Baseball has now had seven players earn a selection to the D2CCA (formerly Daktronics) All-Central Region team, but the trio joins Alex Pimentel (2018) as the only other Bulldog to earn a First Team selection to the team. Other SWOSU Baseball players selected to the D2CCA All-Central Region team include Jon Chidester (2016; Second Team), Jacob Spring (2016; Second Team) and Shane Martin (2013; Second Team).
 
Each of the 16 D2CCA All-Central Region First Team selections will now be listed on the D2CCA Baseball All-America ballot, which will be voted on by the CoSIDA Division II membership with the announcement of those All-American teams expected Friday, June 4.