BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – With the 2023 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) season in the books, the conference announced its annual baseball awards on Monday.
Concordia senior centerfielder Andy Gravdahl was named the Max Molock Player of the Year, while Gustavus right-hander Mitch Casperson was selected Mike Augustin Pitcher of the Year, and Carleton first-year outfielder Sam Chutkow earned MIAC Rookie of the Year honors. Concordia head coach Chris Coste was recognized by his peers as the 2023 Jim Dimick Coach of the Year.
Gravdahl (West Fargo, N.D.) was named MIAC Player of the Year after leading the conference in both runs (29) and hits (40) in 20 league games this season. His 40 MIAC hits are the second-most in a season by any conference player since 1980. Gravdahl finished the year with a conference slash line of .506/.530/.785. He totaled 13 extra-base hits and brought home 23 runs, good for the third-highest RBI total in the conference. He is the eighth Cobber to be named MIAC Player of the Year and the first since Kyle Johnson in 2009.
Casperson (Le Sueur, Minn.) was unanimously selected MIAC Pitcher of the Year after leading the conference with five wins and a 1.18 earned-run average. Casperson pitched a MIAC-high 38.0 innings and struck out a league-best 40 batters while limiting conference opponents to 29 hits and allowing just four walks on the season. Casperson is the Gusties' first-ever MIAC Pitcher of the Year honoree.
Chutkow (Needham, Mass.) was selected MIAC Rookie of the Year after leading all first-year players with 25 hits in his debut season. Chutkow started 16 for the Knights, batting .424 with a .559 slugging percentage. He finished the season with five extra-base hits and six stolen bases. Chutkow is the second Knight to win MIAC Rookie of the Year honors in baseball, joining 2013 selection Hayden Tsutsui.
Coste (9th season) was celebrated by his peers as the MIAC Coach of the Year after leading the Cobbers to a second consecutive playoff berth with a 14-win season – good for the program's best record since a 14-6 2010 campaign and tied for the team's most successful regular season since going 15-5 in 2003. The MIAC Coach of the Year honor is the first for Coste, who was also a three-time MIAC Player of the Year for the Cobbers from 1993-95 before embarking on a 16-year professional career that culminated in a World Series championship with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2008. Coste is the second Cobber baseball coach on record to receive the award from his peers, joining Bucky Burgau who won the award four times (1985, 1992, 2004, 2010).
In addition to individual awards, MIAC coaches also selected 33 players All-Conference with 15 more receiving honorable mention distinction. All awards were nominated by and voted on by the eleven MIAC head baseball coaches and only statistics from regular season MIAC contests were considered for conference honors; any nominated player not selected as All-Conference but still receiving votes from at least three coaches was named honorable mention.
Ten of the 33 players named All-Conference in 2023 were also selected for the honor in 2021 or 2022. Three players – Saint John's senior first baseman Max Nyrop, Gustavus senior shortstop Jack Hanson, and Gustavus senior centerfielder Bryce Novak – earned their third straight All-MIAC nod.
The MIAC also announced the inaugural All-Playoff Team for baseball, which recognized the top eleven performers from the conference tournament, as selected by playoff-participant head coaches.
2023 MIAC Baseball Awards
| 2023 MIAC Baseball Max Molock Player of the Year |
| Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown | High School |
Previous Selections |
| OF |
Andy Gravdahl |
Concordia |
Sr. |
West Fargo, N.D. |
-- |
| 2023 MIAC Baseball Mike Augustin Pitcher of the Year |
| Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown | High School |
Previous Selections |
| RHP |
Mitch Casperson |
Gustavus |
Jr. |
Le Sueur, Minn. |
-- |
| 2023 MIAC Baseball Rookie of the Year |
| Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown | High School |
| OF |
Sam Chutkow |
Carleton |
Fy. |
Needham, Mass. |
| 2023 MIAC Baseball Jim Dimick Coach of the Year |
| Name |
Institution |
Previous Selections |
| Chris Coste |
Concordia |
-- |
| 2023 MIAC Baseball All-Conference Team |
| Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown | High School |
Previous Selections |
| C |
Noah Wenberg |
Bethel |
Sr. |
Stillman Valley, Ill. |
-- |
| 1B |
Mason Coyle |
Saint Mary's |
So. |
Madison, Wis. | Lafollete |
-- |
| 1B |
Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe |
Concordia |
So. |
Moorhead, Minn. |
2022 |
| 1B |
Chris Knowles |
Gustavus |
Jr. |
New Ulm, Minn. | Cathedral |
-- |
| 1B |
Max Nyrop |
Saint John's |
Sr. |
Alameda, Calif. |
2021 | 2022 |
| 2B |
Joe Margolis |
Macalester |
Sr. |
Chicago, Ill. | Jones College Prep |
-- |
| 3B |
Joe Becker |
Saint John's |
Jr. |
New Prague, Minn. |
-- |
| 3B |
Matt Gruber |
Concordia |
Sr. |
Glenwood, Minn. | Minnewaska Area |
2021 |
| SS |
Jack Hanson |
Gustavus |
Sr. |
Minnetonka, Minn. |
2021 | 2022 |
| SS |
Thomas Horan |
Concordia |
Sr. |
Moorhead, Minn. |
-- |
| SS |
Marcus Krupke |
Bethel |
Sr. |
St. Michael, Minn. | St. Michael-Albertville |
2022 |
| SS |
Mitchell Novak |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
Stillwater, Minn. |
-- |
| OF |
Matthew Carlsen |
Bethel |
Jr. |
Miltona, Minn. | Alexandria |
2022 |
| OF |
Sam Chutkow |
Carleton |
Fy. |
Needham, Mass. |
-- |
| OF |
Andy Gravdahl |
Concordia |
Sr. |
West Fargo, N.D. |
2022 |
| OF |
Evan Hammonds |
St. Olaf |
So. |
Brooklyn Park, Minn. | Champlin Park |
-- |
| OF |
Bryce Novak |
Gustavus |
Sr. |
Cleveland, Minn. |
2021 | 2022 |
| OF |
Jake Schelonka |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
Sartell, Minn. |
-- |
| OF |
Jack Schleper |
Saint John's |
Jr. |
Shakopee, Minn. |
-- |
| OF |
Drake Siens |
Gustavus |
Jr. |
Rogers, Minn. | St. Michael-Albertville |
-- |
| OF |
Mike Weiss |
Augsburg |
Sr. |
Marion, Minn. | Linn-Mar |
-- |
| OF |
Justin Winterfeldt |
Bethel |
Sr. |
Savage, Minn. | Shakopee |
2022 |
| DH/P |
Sam Lavin |
St. Olaf |
Jr. |
Algonquin, Ill. | Marian Central Catholic |
-- |
| P |
Adam Biewen |
Gustavus |
Jr. |
Golden Valley, Minn. | Robbinsdale Armstrong |
-- |
| P |
Mitch Casperson |
Gustavus |
Jr. |
Le Sueur, Minn. |
-- |
| P |
Jack Haring |
Saint John's |
Sr. |
Ham Lake, Minn. | Blaine |
-- |
| P |
Addison Hochevar |
Saint Mary's |
Jr. |
Lake Geneva, Wis. | Badger |
-- |
| P |
Ty Koehn |
Bethel |
Gr. |
Arden Hills, Minn. | Mounds View |
2022 |
| P |
Wyatt Rudolf |
Saint John's |
Sr. |
Carver, Minn. | Chanhassen |
-- |
| P |
Luke Siegle |
Gustavus |
So. |
Blaine, Minn. | Totino-Grace |
-- |
| P |
Evan Soeffker |
Saint John's |
Fy. |
Buffalo, Minn. |
-- |
| P |
John Solfest |
Bethel |
Sr. |
Shoreview, Minn. | Mounds View |
-- |
| P |
Ashwin Stratton |
Concordia |
Sr. |
Fergus Falls, Minn. | Kennedy |
-- |
| 2023 MIAC Baseball Honorable Mention |
| Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown | High School |
Previous Selections |
| C |
Matt Odom |
Macalester |
Jr. |
Glendale, Calif. | St. Francis |
2021 (AC) |
| 1B |
Charlie Burton |
Macalester |
Jr. |
Round Lake, Ill. |
-- |
| 1B |
Tyler Johnson |
Hamline |
Jr. |
Poplar, Wis. | Duluth Marshall |
-- |
| 1B |
Steven Salz |
Augsburg |
Sr. |
Maple Grove, Minn. |
-- |
| 2B |
Jake Christianson |
Concordia |
So. |
Glencoe, Minn. | Glencoe-Silver Lake |
-- |
| 3B |
Nick Kulseth |
Bethel |
Sr. |
Roseville, Minn. |
-- |
| SS |
Matthew Kulesa |
St. Olaf |
So. |
Minneapolis, Minn. | DeLaSalle |
-- |
| SS |
Jackson Peter |
Saint John's |
So. |
Elrosa, Minn. | Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa |
-- |
| OF |
Riley Bauman |
Saint Mary's |
So. |
Stratford, Wis. |
-- |
| OF |
Rodney Erickson |
Saint John's |
Jr. |
St. Paul, Minn. | Woodbury |
-- |
| OF |
Caiden Kjelstrom |
Concordia |
So. |
Aitkin, Minn. |
-- |
| OF |
Sam Zacks |
Carleton |
So. |
Glencoe, Minn. | New Trier |
-- |
| DH |
Gavin Baker |
Gustavus |
Sr. |
Lakeville, Minn. | North |
2022 (AC) |
| DH |
Mac Enlow |
Hamline |
Sr. |
Blaine, Minn. |
2021 (AC) |
| DH |
Tommy Friesen |
Bethel |
Gr. |
St. Cloud, Minn. | Tech |
-- |
| 2023 MIAC Baseball All-Playoff Team |
| Position |
Name |
Institution |
Class |
Hometown | High School |
Previous Selections |
| 1B |
Keenan Hodgkin |
Bethel |
Gr. |
Plymouth, Minn. | Providence Academy |
-- |
| 1B |
Max Nyrop |
Saint John's |
Sr. |
Alameda, Calif. |
-- |
| SS |
Jack Hanson |
Gustavus |
Sr. |
Minnetonka, Minn. |
-- |
| OF |
Andy Gravdahl |
Concordia |
Sr. |
West Fargo, N.D. |
-- |
| OF |
Bryce Novak |
Gustavus |
Sr. |
Cleveland, Minn. |
-- |
| P |
Kody Dalen |
Saint John's |
Jr. |
Carver, Minn. | Chanhassen |
-- |
| P |
Lane Glaser |
Gustavus |
Sr. |
Hutchinson, Minn. |
-- |
| P |
Ty Koehn |
Bethel |
Gr. |
Arden Hills, Minn. | Mounds View |
-- |
| P |
Marcus Krupke |
Bethel |
Sr. |
St. Michael, Minn. | St. Michael-Albertville |
-- |
| P |
Luke Levasseur |
Concordia |
Sr. |
Alexandria, Minn. |
-- |
| P |
Max Sutter |
Bethel |
So. |
Albertville, Minn. | St. Michael-Albertville |
-- |