A school record total of four Missouri State baseball Bears were named to the Missouri Valley Scholar-Athlete First Team and seniors Josh Mazzola and Ben Woodbury earned honorable mention accolades to bring the total to six student-athletes among the 20 selections as voted by the league’s sports information directors and released by the conference office Wednesday.

Junior outfielder Ryan Mantle headlined the first-team choices with his second consecutive spot on the squad. He was joined on the first team by sophomore designated hitter Ben Carlson, sophomore pitcher Tim Clubb and junior infielder Chris Playter.

Mantle’s repeat selection makes him one of six players in school history to be honored on the first team two times. The Eureka, Mo., product completed his junior season with a .298 batting average in 56 games while slugging four home runs, 20 doubles and three triples. He carries a 3.72 GPA in insurance and risk management.

Also a CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Third-Team All-American, Carlson led the Bears in home runs (17) and RBIs (67) while batting .379 and starting all 57 games at DH. A native of Topeka, Kan., Carlson boasts a 3.83 GPA in general business.

A Collegiate Baseball First-Team All-American and MVC Pitcher of the Year, Clubb went 11-0 as MSU’s ace and finished the year with a 2.52 ERA in 103.2 innings pitched. He owns the school record for most victories without a loss, and has a 3.30 GPA in three years as an advertising and promotion major. Clubb was a high school teammate of Mantle’s in Eureka.

Playter is a member of the Honors College at MSU and carries a 3.81 GPA in communications as a fourth-year junior. A second-team all-MVC pick as a utility player, the Raytown, Mo., native started 50 games for MSU on the infield and batted .299 with 34 RBIs, 12 stolen bases and 48 runs scored.

Mazzola used an incredible second half of the season to finish the year hitting .304 with 15 homers and 50 RBIs after making only 42 starts at first base. A native of Santee, Calif., Mazzola was a "Louisville Slugger" National Player of the Week on May 5 and has a 3.63 GPA in communications.

Woodbury was a first-team all-conference choice, starting all 57 games in center field and leading the Bears with a .388 batting average. He drove in 47 runs, slugged five triples and finished the year second in school history with 71 singles for the season. The West Plains native’s 92 total hits ranked fifth all-time for a season at MSU. Woodbury has a 3.07 GPA in hospitality and restaurant administration.

The criteria for the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete Team voting parallels the CoSIDA (College

Sports Information Directors of America) standards for Academic All-America voting. Nominees must be starters

or important reserves, with at least a 3.00 cumulative grade point average. Student-athletes must have reached

sophomore athletic and academic standing at their institution and must have completed at least one full academic

year at their institution.

A total of 38 student-athletes were nominated.