NATCHITOCHES – For Northwestern State right-handed pitchers Alex Makarewich and Drayton Brown, a spot on the Southland has become commonplace.
 
For Jake Haze, Thursday's announcement marked a career first.
 
That trio of Demons were named to the 2023 Southland Academic All-Conference Baseball Teams, which are chosen by votes of league coaches, sports information directors and academic personnel. To be included on the conference's all-academic team, student-athletes must have a composite 3.0 grade point average and demonstrated athletic achievement throughout the season.
 
Makarewich, a junior right-handed pitcher from Keller, Texas, was a repeat first-team selection while Haze, a junior shortstop from Highlands Ranch, Colorado, earned first-team honors for the first time in his career.
 
A junior right-hander from Nacogdoches, Texas, Brown was a second-team selection, earning all-conference honors for the second straight season.
 
Haze enjoyed a breakout season offensively, earning second-team All-Southland Conference honors while holding a 3.8 grade point average as a business administration major. A May graduate, Haze led the Southland Conference in batting average (.418) and on-base percentage (.505) in conference games while batting .316 overall with four home runs and a team-leading 41 RBIs.
 
Makarewich earned his second straight academic honor following a season in which he notched his first on-field all-conference selection. A second-team all-conference pitcher, Makarewich earned his undergraduate degree in industrial engineering technology in May, graduating with a 3.96 grade point average.
 
On the mound, Makarewich ranked second in the Southland Conference with 89 strikeouts – the eighth-highest single-season total in NSU history – and in opponent's batting average (.208) in his first season as a starting pitcher.
 
Brown ranked second on the team in wins (6) and innings pitched (81.1) and tied for third with 70 strikeouts. He kept the Demons' season alive with the first complete game of his career to eliminate McNeese from the Southland Conference Tournament on May 26.
 
Brown finished his third season at Northwestern State with 179 strikeouts, five shy of the school's top 10 career list.
 
The trio's academic accomplishments marked the second straight season Northwestern State has placed three players on the conference's all-academic team.
 
2023 ACADEMIC ALL-SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM

Name	School	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown	GPA	Major
Edgar Alvarez *	Nicholls	Jr.	1B	Orlando, Fla.	3.03	Interdisciplinary Studies
Tyler Bischke *^	New Orleans	Sr.	2B	Pittsburgh, Pa.	3.61	Finance
Alec Carr *	UIW	Sr.	UT	Sugar Land, Texas	3.04	Sociology
Parker Coddou *	Nicholls	Jr.	SS	Thibodaux, La.	3.51	Business Administration
Patrick Hail	Lamar	So.	P	Arlington, Texas	4.00	Finance
Steve Hayward *	UIW	Sr.	P	Flower Mound, Texas	3.51	Business Administration
Jake Haze	Northwestern State	Sr.	SS	Highlands Ranch, Colo.	3.80	Business Administration
Josh Leslie	McNeese	Sr.	SS	Kenosha, Wisc.	3.65	Health & Human Performance
Alex Makarewich	Northwestern State	Sr.	P	Keller, Texas	3.96	Industrial Engineering Technology
Jacob Mead	New Orleans	Sr.	P	Round Rock, Texas	3.64	Business Administration
Tré Obregon III	McNeese	Sr.	DH	Sallisaw, Okla.	3.82	Health & Human Performance
Max Puls	A&M-Corpus Christi	Sr.	1B	Palm Desert, Calif.	3.76	University Studies
Nico Saltaformaggio	Nicholls	Jr.	P	Destrehan, La.	3.72	Business Administration
Xane Washington *	Nicholls	Gr.	OF	Houma, La.	3.33	Master's Clinical Nutrition Dietetics Leadership

SECOND TEAM

Name	School	Yr.	Pos.	Hometown	GPA	Major
Kevin Bermudez	Lamar	Sr.	LF	Caguas, Puerto Rico	3.58	University Studies
Josh Blankenship	Lamar	Sr.	1B	Santa Fe, Texas	3.62	Masters in Business Administration
Drayton Brown	Northwestern State	Jr.	P	Nacogdoches, Texas	3.96	Business Administration
Brad Burckel	McNeese	Sr.	2B	Lindale, Texas	3.50	Health & Human Performance
Kayden Cassidy	UIW	Sr.	P	Burleson, Texas	3.46	Business Administration - Management
Reed Chumley	HCU	Jr.	3B	Cypress, Texas	3.07	Business
Jimmy DeLeon	UIW	Sr.	2B	El Paso, Texas	3.31	Business Administration - Finance
Devin Desandro	Nicholls	Jr.	P	Thibodaux, La.	3.57	Health Sciences - Pre-Professional
Wilson Ehrhardt	UIW	Gr.	OF	Katy, Texas	3.83	MS - Business Administration
Jacob Ellis	Lamar	Jr.	P	Edmond, Okla.	3.50	University Studies
Tyler Larue	HCU	Sr.	C	Blanco, Texas	3.73	Criminal Justice
Shea Thomas	Southeastern	Sr.	3B	Olympia, Wash.	3.68	General Studies
Wes Toups	Nicholls	Sr.	OF	Thibodaux, La.	3.47	Finance
Isaiah Zavala	UIW	Sr.	P	San Antonio, Texas	3.53	Business Administration - Accounting

* - Automatic Selection (First Team All-Conference)
^ - Student-Athlete of the Year