Greenwood, Ind.- Three Denison Big Red baseball players were named to an Academic All-America® Team, as selected by the College Sports Communicators for the 2025-26 season. Congratulations to Andrew Fazio, Max Fishbein, and Erik Sundgren for earning this honor.

Junior catcher Andrew Fazio (Minneapolis, Minn. | Biology), was a crucial component to Denison baseball's Championship defense, and his efforts on and off the field earned him an Academic All-America® first-team nod of his career. Fazio started 45 of the 47 games he played in, and recorded a batting average of .329, notching 38 runs, 51 hits, and 41 RBIs for a slugging percentage of .477. At catcher, he recorded 365 putouts, tallied 23 assists, and had a fielding percentage of .997. His efforts during the regular season earned him All-Conference second-team recognition.

Senior first baseman Max Fishbein (Atlanta, Ga. | Data Analytics) earned his first Academic All-America® recognition after earning second team honors for his contribution to the Big Red's historic Championship season. Fishbein was second on the Big Red Championship team in putouts with 284 as their starting first baseman. Fishbein started 42 of the 48 games he played in, led the team in double plays (22), and finished the season with a fielding percentage of .986. He batted .364 for the season, totaling 32 runs off 55 hits, and batted in 35 RBIs. He wrapped his career with a .570 slugging percentage and was sixth on the team in on-base percentage (.479). His efforts this season earned him All-North Coast Athletic Conference third-team recognition.

Senior center fielder Erik Sundgren (Pittsburgh, Pa. | Applied Mathematics), for the second consecutive year, has been named Academic All-America® Second Team. Sundgren was the anchor to the Denison baseball team's outfield. At center field, Sundgren's speed and accuracy back into the infield led to 115 putouts and four assists. He finished his senior season with a fielding percentage of .992. In the box, Sundgren capped his final season as a Big Red with a career high of 79 hits for 74 runs. He batted in 64 runs and led the team in walks with 40. Sundgren was fifth on the team in batting percentage,.373, and second on the team in slugging percentage (.660). His efforts earned him first-team All-NCAC honors as well as first-team ABCA and D3baseball.com All-Region recognition. He was most recently named a D3baseball.com third-team All-American.

This achievement raises Denison's total to 142 Academic All-Americans® in school history. Fazio and Fishbein earned their first Academic All-America® honors, while Sundgren earned his second, bringing the baseball program's Academic All-America® recognition total to 13. Fazio is the third player to receive first-team honors, while Fishbein and Sundgren are fifth and sixth, respectively, to be named to the second team. 

Established in 1952, the Academic All-America® program, selected by College Sports Communicators, is a premier nationwide college scholar-athlete awards program. It annually recognizes over 1,400 outstanding student-athletes across Division I, II, III, and NAIA, representing all NCAA championship sports.