GREENWOOD, Ind. - The 2026 Academic All-District® Baseball teams were released on Tuesday, selected by College Sports Communicators, and recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the diamond and in the classroom. The Marian baseball team earned two honors in the 2026 season, as Evan Cooke and Eli Loichinger were recipients of the honor.

To be named to the CSC Academic All-District Team, athletes must maintain a 3.50 GPA or better and be a sophomore or older, and participate in at least 90% of team games played as a position player, or have started at least 66% of the total number of team games played. For pitchers, players must pitch 35-plus innings or appear in 17 games as a pitcher.

For the Knights, the two pitchers Evan Cooke and Eli Loichinger were the two members in the program who fit all of the required criteria to be named 2026 CSC Academic All-District honorees. The honors for Cooke and Loichinger are the first in each of their careers. 

Marian was one of six Crossroads League schools to receive the honor, with the league earning a total of 22 honors. Indiana Wesleyan, Taylor, and Mount Vernon Nazarene each had the maximum five honors earned. 

Evan Cooke had a breakout season for the Knights in his first year in the program, as the junior was the team's leader in strikeouts and co-leader in pitching appearances this season. Cooke carried a record of 6-1 and an ERA of 4.81 in 15 outings, making 13 starts to total 67.1 innings on the year. Cooke allowed 56 hits and 42 total runs, striking out a team-best 95 batters. Cooke held opponents to a .219 batting average, pitching at least 3.0 innings in each of his starts this season. The junior tossed a team-best 13 strikeouts in the team's game on April 10 against Bethel University.

Eli Loichinger found continued success in his sophomore season, making a leap on the mound as a full-time starter for the Marian pitching staff. Loichinger started all 13 of his appearances this year, leading the Knights in wins and innings pitched for the year as he was named to the Crossroads League First Team. The sophomore ended the year with a 3.89 ERA and a record of 8-3, pitching 76.1 innings on the season. Loichinger retired 73 batters on strikes during the season and held opponents to a .254 batting average as he yielded 33 earned runs. Marian's top pitcher in the rotation tossed one of the team's two complete games this season. 

Loichinger's efforts both on and off the field placed him on the Academic All-America ballot, where he has an opportunity to be one of the 2026 Academic All-Americans. Academic All-America Teams will be announced on Tuesday, June 23. 

Marian had a record-setting season that ended with a 35-18 overall record, seeing the program return to the NAIA Opening Round for the first time since the 2019 season. Loichinger and Cooke were two of the team's 15 pitchers who helped break the program's single-season team strikeout mark, as their combined 168 strikeouts added to the new record of 466. 

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