SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. - California's Michael Valente earned the 2026 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference’s Baseball Champion Scholar Award, the conference office announced on Wednesday at the beginning of the 2026 PSAC Baseball Championship in Slippery Rock, Pa.

Valente, who hails from Wallingford, Pa., is a senior that has maintained an impressive 4.0 grade point average through 109 credits while pursuing a degree in management with a minor in marketing. This is the second year Valente recieved this honor. 

The PSAC Champion Scholar Awards are modeled after the NCAA's Elite Scholar-Athlete Award (formerly Elite 90 Award) and honor the student-athlete with the top grade point average who is competing at the site of each of the PSAC's finals sites. The selection criteria for the Champion Scholar Awards is identical to that of the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete Awards, which honor the student-athlete with the top GPA at each of the championship finals sites of the 90 NCAA championships across all three divisions – I, II, and III.