Austin, Texas — Catawba College graduate infielder Cole Hales was named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America team as a First Team selection, the organization announced Tuesday afternoon.

Hales earned First Team All-South Atlantic Conference and unanimous First Team All-Southeast Region accolades while earning All-America honors from the American Baseball Coaches Association. Hales broke out in his final season in the blue and white, hitting a blistering .407 with 17 doubles and seven homers with a team-best 55 RBI and 38 walks.

Pairing with his excellence on the field, Hales sported a 3.81 cumulative grade point average across his Sports Management undergraduate degree and his Masters in Business Administration.

Hales is the first Catawba student-athlete to earn Academic All-America status since Hunter Shepherd in 2021 and just the fourth to earn First Team Academic All-America status in program history.

The Salisbury native joins sister Kary Hales as both were named outright All-Americans and Academic All-Americans in baseball and softball, respectively, in their final season playing for the Catawba Indians.