The Concordia University baseball team received high honors from coaches around the region, with four players being selected to the 2008 Rawlings/ABCA All-Central Region teams. Junior Brenden Furrow (Johnston, Iowa) was a first team selection and was joined by second team picks Joe Abellera (Sr., Minnetonka, Minn.), Chris Herbert (Jr., White Bear Lake, Minn.) and Jake Schmidt (Jr., Oakdale, Minn.).

The all-region team was voted on by league coaches in the Central Region, consisting of the Northern Sun, North Central and Mid-America conferences. This year's second team includes an extra infielder, outfielder and relief pitcher due to ties at each position in the voting. Concordia's four selections between the two teams ties Wayne State for the most players on the teams from an NSIC member.

Furrow had a scorching season at the plate, setting the single season hits record at Concordia with 65 in just 43 games. He opened the season on a torrid 21 game hitting streak, carrying over the streak from the final two games of 2007. He finished the season hitting .433 with 11 home runs and team-highs with 15 doubles, 48 RBI and 46 runs scored. His .753 slugging pct. also led the team as did his .482 on base pct. He did not commit an error all season in 65 chances primarily in right field.

Abellera, a former Minnesota Twins draft pick, is the only senior for Concordia on the all-region team. The NSIC's Newcomer of the Year in 2008 hit .371 while slugging a team-best 13 home runs, one shy of the single season school record. The leadoff hitter, center fielder, shortstop and third baseman for Concordia scored 46 runs in 42 games and amassed a .730 slugging pct., committing only three errors despite being shuffled around the diamond in the most important fielding positions on the field as needed.

Herbert, who transferred to CU from the Univ. of Minnesota after hitting above .300 in the Big Ten as a sophomore, was the top power hitting catcher in the Northern Sun. He also handled a pitching staff that compiled a team 4.55 earned run average and was instrumental in one of the top strikeout pitching teams in the nation, as Concordia's staff struck out 311 batters in 310.1 innings. At the plate, however, Herbert led all NSIC catchers with 12 home runs while hitting .328 with 33 RBI and 41 runs. Herbert also led the team in walks, drawing 24. He had a .990 fielding pct. behind the plate.

Schmidt put together the most impressive pitching performance in Golden Bear baseball history, reaching 100 strikeouts in a single season, shattering the prior record of 78. He won his first seven decisions before taking tough losses on back-to-back days at the NCAA Central Regional, where he worked 6.1 innings in two appearances, striking out 10 and walking just one. He finished the year 7-2 with two saves and a 2.82 ERA. While his 100 strikeouts were impressive, they were even more impressive when his control was taken into account, as he issued only 15 walks (6.7 k/bb) with a 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings clip. At the plate, Schmidt finished the year hitting .316. He rode a nine game hitting streak into regionals, lifting his average from .241 before the streak to .333 before the streak was snapped in the first round. He slugged four home runs and 24 RBI, including a walk-off game winning home run against Winona State.