NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State senior second baseman Edwin Gomez was named to the Southland Conference All-Academic baseball team as a member of the first squad, the league office announced Tuesday.
 
Gomez graduated with a 4.0 grade point average in general studies just before he helped the team claim its first Southland Conference Tournament appearance since 2010 in May.
 
"We are so proud of Edwin and for what he accomplished on the field and in the classroom," said Demon head coach Lane Burroughs. "It is such a well-deserved honor for him."
 
The Santiago, Dominican Republic native, finished with the second-highest batting average on the team, and had 29 runs scored and 19 driven in.  He was third in stolen bases with 12, third in doubles with eight and second in triples with two.
 
"He had to overcome other obstacles that normal students don't have to endure.  Being from a different country, he had to learn our language and customs," said Burroughs. "He is a tremendous worker both on the field and off."
 
He started in 58 of NSU's 59 games, most at second base.  He also started three games in center field, four in left field and one at third base.  He took over the leadoff spot in the Demon lineup in the 14^th game of the season, and stayed there for the rest of the season. 
 
Gomez drew nine walks on the season, and only struck out 14 times.  He finished his season with a five-for-five day at the plate when NSU was eliminated from the league tournament. 
 
The Demons finished in a tie for third place, and entered the league tourney as the fourth seed.  They made an appearance in the semifinals for the first time since 2010, also the last time NSU won 30 games.
 
Gomez was a part of the 14-game turnaround in league play from 2013, a Southland Conference record.  He was also a member of NSU's school-tying record with a 17-game turnaround in overall wins.
 
Twelve league teams had at least one representative on the all-academic team with McNeese leading the way with five selections. Southeastern Louisiana had three all-academic honorees while Houston Baptist, Incarnate Word, Lamar, Nicholls, Sam Houston and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi each had two. Central Arkansas, New Orleans, Northwestern State and Oral Roberts all had one apiece.
 
The student-athlete of the year, selected by the league's awards committee, must have attained athletics achievement for at least two years at the nominating institution, possess at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and demonstrate extracurricular service at his campus and or community.
 
The all-academic teams are voted on by the head coaches, sports information directors and academic/compliance administrators from each Southland university. Student-athletes must possess a 3.0 cumulative GPA, have completed one full academic year at the nominating institution and participated in at least 50 percent of the team's competition to qualify for the all-academic squad.

2014 Southland Conference Baseball All-Academic Teams
First Team

Name	University	Class	Hometown	GPA	Major
Anthony Azar^1,2	Sam Houston State	Sr.	The Woodlands, Texas	3.43	Geology
Andrew Guillotte1,2,%	McNeese State	Jr.	Moss Bluff, La.	3.58	Health Education
Russell Vaughn1,%,#	A&M-Corpus Christi	Sr.	Mesa, Ariz.	4.00	Health Science
Jason Stone1,%	UIW	Sr.	Georgetown, Texas	3.71	Vision Science
Jameson Fisher1,%	Southeastern Louisiana	So.	Zachary, La.	3.50	Kinesiology
Doug Votolato1	Central Arkansas	Sr.	Flower Mound, Texas	3.12	Marketing
Jackson Gooch1	McNeese State	Sr.	Delta, B.C.	3.47	General Studies
Chayse Marion1	McNeese State	Sr.	Reed Deer, Alberta	3.64	General Studies
Tyler Boss1	Oral Roberts	Sr.	Spring, Texas	3.26	Business Adminstration
Andro Cutura1	Southeastern Louisiana	Jr.	Pearl River, La.	3.20	Kinesiology
Brandon Tierney1	A&M-Corpus Christi	Sr.	Arlington, Texas	3.00	Communications
Edwin Gomez	Northwestern State	Sr.	Santiago, D.R.	4.00	General Studies

 
Second Team

Name	University	Class	Hometown	GPA	Major
Jude Vidrine3	Lamar	Sr.	Nederland, Texas	3.45	Mechanical Engineering
Reese Kanter	New Orleans	Sr.	Phoenix, Ariz.	3.84	Business Management
Chase Angelle3	Lamar	Sr.	Orange, Texas	3.82	Accounting
Lucas Quary	McNeese State	Sr.	Mt. Pleasant, Texas	3.89	Math
Grant Borne	Nicholls	So.	Baton Rouge, La.	3.50	Biology
Mike Chamberlain	Houston Baptist	Sr.	Nacogdoches, Texas	4.00	Kinesiology: Wellness Mgmt
Marc Picciola	Nicholls	Sr.	Destrehan, La.	3.52	General Studies
Connor Lloyd2	McNeese State	Sr.	Marshall, Texas	3.88	Health Education
Daniel Midyett	Southeastern Louisiana	So.	Shreveport, La.	3.40	Psychology
Tyler Eppler2	Sam Houston State	Jr.	Navasota, Texas	3.44	Kinesiology
Jordan McCoy	Houston Baptist	Sr.	Exline, Iowa	3.34	Kinesiology: Wellness Mgmt
Dylan Boss	UIW	Jr.	Boerne, Texas	3.95	Business Administration

 
^{^}2014 Southland Baseball Student-Athlete of the Year
¹Automatic Selection
²Two-time all-academic selection
³Three-time all-academic selection
^%Capital One Academic All-District
^#Capital One Academic All-America