GREENSBORO, N.C. – Skyler Dark (Pleasant Garden, N.C.) was selected to the national ballot for the chance at Academic All-American status for the Guilford College baseball team, getting accompanied by Ethan George (Burlington, N.C.), Tanner Royals (High Point, N.C.) on the Collegiate Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District team, as announced by the organization on Tuesday.

In order to qualify for the honor in baseball, student-athletes must be at least an academic and athletic sophomore, maintaining a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or higher in the classroom. Meanwhile on the diamond, a player must appear in 90 percent of the team's games or start in 66 percent of them, with the lone exception being for pitchers who must make 17 appearances on the mound, or throw 35.0 innings or more. No more than five student-athletes may be nominated per school.

Dark made a huge leap in his third season calling Edgar H. McBane Field his home, posting career-bests in virtually every offensive category this spring. The lone Quaker to play all-39 games, he accrued a team-leading 156 at-bats and did damage, finishing as the Old Dominion Athletic Conference's (ODAC) regular season hits leader with 65. On top of that, he led all of Region VI baseball in triples, with seven, and the squad in two-baggers, with 16. The batting average and on-base marks on his .417/.489/.647 triple-slash led the team while his slugging percentage was GC's second-best mark. He was also the team-leader in runs scored, with 40, and third in runs driven in, with 30, while drawing a team-high 21 walks and going 5-6 on steal attempts. A 2026 Third Team All-ODAC pick and consensus Second Team All-Region selection adds another accolade to his distinguished career and has the opportunity to become the second CSC Academic All-American in program history after John Macon Smith '14 in 2014. Studying Business Administration at Guilford, Dark owns a 3.58 GPA. With is selection to the national ballot, he has the chance to earn Academic All-America status, with the national ballot factoring in an athlete's academic and athletic achievement, in addition to their leadership on-and-off the diamond. Dark is one of 180 players nationally to advance to the national ballot and be in the running for CSC Academic All-American honors in addition to being one of just two players from the ODAC to advance to this stage of the process.

George is the lone repeat representative for Guilford on the Academic All-District squad. Appearing in 32 contests, the junior shortstop made 30 starts for the Quakers and racked up 106 at-bats. Hitting .255/.313/.434, George connected on seven doubles and four homers on his way to 13 runs scored and 17 driven in. Posting 27 hits and seven walks, George owned a .747 OPS and had 46 total bases. His biggest area of development was defensively, however, adding nearly 25 points to his fielding percentage at shortstop, leading the team in assists, with 89, and ranking seventh in putouts, with 39, while contributing to a team-high 12 double plays. George owns a GPA of 3.72 as a Business Administration major at Guilford.

The third of the Quakers trio of junior honorees is Royals who emerged as the ace of the Guilford pitching staff this season. Leading Quaker pitching qualifiers in ERA, at 5.30, and second in both WHIP, at 1.64, and batting average against, at .321, with all of those marks significantly stronger prior to a difficult end-of-season stretch. Over 56.0 innings of work, he fanned a team-high 47 batters against just 16 walks allowed as GC's Saturday game one starter, making 12 appearances with 10 starts. Unfortunately, facing the other aces of the ODAC every week, he did not factor into many decisions, finishing 0-3 on the year. When not on the mound, Royals was hitting the books to the tune of an even 3.50 GPA in the Guilford biology program.

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