OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Ball State baseball player Caleb Stayton was one of 30 NCAA student-athletes who were recently selected as candidates for the 2017 Senior CLASS Award®in collegiate baseball. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Stayton, a native of Goshen, Indiana, was the only player from the Mid-American Conference to earn a spot on the prestigious list. In the classroom, Stayton has qualified for the dean’s list every semester he has been at Ball State. Last spring, he was named a CoSIDA first-team Academic All-American.
A Presidential Scholar at Ball State, Stayton posted a 4.0 GPA in the fall and currently carries a 3.91 cumulative GPA as a digital sports production major and a member of Ball State Sports Link. He is expected to graduate this spring.
Stayton organizes all of the community service events for the Ball State baseball team. He has organized events with the Muncie Boys and Girls Club, YMCA, Secret Families, Habitat for Humanity, the Youth Opportunity Center and Bargain Box. When the Cardinals took a trip to the Dominican Republic in the fall of 2015, Stayton and the rest of the team took time out from their trip for several volunteer activities.
On the field, Stayton was named to the ABCA/Rawlings All-Mideast Region First Team and All-Mid-American Conference First Team last spring. He was also a semifinalist for the 2016 Gregg Olson Award. Stayton ranked 10th nationally in RBIs (71) last spring and led the MAC in batting average (.377), RBIs, walks (42) and on-base percentage (.482).
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four C’s of community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2017 College World Series® in June.
For the complete baseball Senior CLASS candidate list, please visit seniorclassaward.com.
