KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- College Sports Communicators released its Academic All-District list Tuesday afternoon, with four Western Michigan softball student-athletes earning accolades. This season, Rissa Bajusz, Haley Boxwell, Megan Welsh, and Riley Dittmar received CSC Academic All-District nods for their efforts on the field and in the classroom. Bajusz and Boxwell have been selected as CSC Academic All-America® finalists and will advance to the national ballot to be voted on by CSC members.

Bajusz, who is majoring in Early childhood professional education, became the program's first-ever Mid-American Conference Pitcher of the Year during the 2024 campaign. This season Bajusz posted a career-high in wins (16) and strikeouts (218, fifth all-time in single-season history for WMU softball). In addition to a career-high ERA (1.93), Bajusz's 20 complete games this season marked the sixth most complete games recorded in WMU single-season history. 

Majoring in Sport Management, Boxwell batted .322 on the year, while recording three home runs, 14 doubles, and 28 RBI. The senior's 28 RBI matched the ninth most RBI produced in WMU single-season history. This year, the catcher notched 10 multi-hit games and totaled 204 putouts defensively. 

Welsh, a Sport Management graduate student, hit .264 this season while blasting a team-high five home runs en route to driving in 21 teammates in 2024. Welsh produced the third most doubles on WMU with eight, was fourth on the team with 55 total bases, and was fifth on WMU with 21 RBI and 17 runs.

Dittmar, pursuing a degree in Biomedical Sciences saw career highs across the board in 15 different offensive categories including batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, runs, hits, doubles, and triples. Dittmar's career season earned her team highs with 35 runs scored, 14 doubles, two triples, 28 RBI, 78 total bases, a slugging percentage of .527, a .965 ops, and 22 walks. 

The 2023-24 Academic All-District® Softball teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the diamond and in the classroom. The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes softball honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and NAIA. Student-athletes selected as CSC Academic All-America® finalists are denoted with an asterisk and will advance to the national ballot to be voted on by CSC members. First-, second- and third-team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced June 18, 2024.

For more information about the CSC Academic All-District® and Academic All-America® Teams program, visit AcademicAllAmerica.com.

For all things WMU softball, make sure to follow the team on Instagram @wmusoftball_, X @WMUSoftball, and Facebook @westernmichigansoftball.