CHICAGO, Ill. -- North Park Baseball saw three members honored with Third Team All-Region 8 honors by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) on Tuesday afternoon. Senior center fielder Alex DiVito, junior second baseman Rylan Kawakami, and sophomore catcher Reyn Matsuzaki were the Viking representatives on the ABCA's list.
DiVito nearly duplicated his numbers from 2024 as one of the top hitters to come out of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW). The senior outfielder batted .340 with 51 hits, 35 runs scored, 11 doubles, five home runs, and a triple to total a .527 slugging percentage. He drew 22 walks and swiped 23 bases, finishing his career with 57, which rank 11th all-time at North Park. He concludes his career in a variety of spots across the NPU record books, most notably sixth all-time with 185 career hits.
Kawakami moved from third base to second base, becoming a significant run produced for the NPU lineup. He batted .309 with 47 hits, including seven doubles, a pair of home runs, and a triple while driving in 26 runners and scoring 31. On the bases, he accounted for 16 steals and carried a .397 on-base percentage. Defensively, he was a part of seven doubles plays and totaled 59 assists.
Matsuzaki, a First Team All-CCIW pick, led the Vikings in Batting Average (.350), Slugging Percentage (.573), Hits (55), RBI (42), Home Runs (9), and Total Bases (90) this season. The lefty from Honolulu, Hawaii fielded .974 with 39 assists behind the plate, including catching 17 would-be base stealers. He had 19 multi-hit games, including a pair of four-knock performances, and he led NPU with 13 multi-RBI games.
The Chair of the ABCA NCAA Div. III All-America & Coach of the Year Committee is Paul Hesse of the University of Mount Union. Also on the committee are Brian Casey (U.S. Coast Guard Academy), Pete Egbert (Misericordia University), Dan Gomez (Western New England University), Ray Hedrick (Randolph-Macon College), Luke Johnson (North Park University), Scott Laverty (Chapman University), Yogi Lutz (Alvernia University), Nick Pontari (Russell Sage College), and Kevin Tomasiewicz (University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh).
The ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Div. III All-America teams will be announced the evening of Thursday, May 29 immediately following the Opening Ceremony at the 2025 NCAA Div. III World Series in Eastlake, Ohio. Only First Team All-Region selections are eligible for All-America honors.
The ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove teams for all divisions will be announced on Wednesday, June 18. The 2025 ABCA NCAA Div. III Region All-Defensive teams will be announced on Thursday, June 19.
The ABCA All-America team was first recognized in 1949 and now includes nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division, and high school. ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove teams were first recognized in 2007.
