MITCHELL, S.D. – Two Dakota Wesleyan University basketball players were honored with national academic honors, it was announced Thursday.
Men's junior guard Trae Bergh (Crooks, S.D.) and women's senior guard Celeste Beck (Sioux Falls, S.D.) were named to the Capital One Academic All-District Teams for their work in the classroom and on the court. The award is voted on by the College Sports Information Directors of America and honors the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom.
Bergh, an athletic training major, was named to the District 3 First Team, which is comprised of athletes from Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin. This is the second time Bergh has been named to the team, after winning the award as a sophomore. As a member of the first team, Bergh is eligible to win All-American honors, which will be voted on later this month.
Bergh has been a key contributor for the Tigers on the court this season, averaging 15.9 points per game. He leads has made 66 3-pointers and is shooting a team-best 92.4 percent from the free-throw line.
This is not the first national academic award Bergh has earned in his junior season. He received the Emil S. Liston Award in the fall of 2014, an award given to one junior basketball player nationally.
For Beck, this is the second time she has been honored by Capital One for her work in the classroom and on the court. She was named to the District 3 Second Team. Beck is leading the Tigers in scoring this season with 12.3 points per game, while adding 4.4 rebounds and a team-leading four assists per game.
Beck, a pre-med major, also earned NAIA All-American Scholar Athlete Honors as a junior. She was a Capital One All-District First Team member in 2012-13.