Bagwell named CSC Academic All-American

Story originally published on vmkikeydets.com

After an exceptional season both on the lacrosse field and in his studies, VMI lacrosse junior attackman Dayton Bagwell was voted as a Second Team Academic All-American as selected by the College Sports Communicators (CSC), the organization announced Wednesday.
 
The CSC Academic All-America program is the most prestigious academic honor a student-athlete can achieve. To achieve the feat, the individual must own a 3.50 cumulative GPA and be a sophomore or above in class standing while competing in at least 90 percent of the team’s competitions from that season to make the Academic All-District Team. With sufficient accolades on both the athletic and academic sides of the spectrum, Bagwell was elected for the next round of voting to be considered for Academic All-America status. 
 
Full CSC press release and Division I – III list of Academic All-Americans
 
Bagwell just completed his junior year at the Institute and owns a perfect 4.0 GPA as an international studies major.
 
Men’s lacrosse is considered an At-Large sport for the organization and its nominees also compete against the sports of golf, wrestling, hockey, volleyball, water polo, fencing and skiing, making it that much more difficult to be named as an Academic All-American.
 
In mid-June, teammates Jack Rogers, Will Gormsen, Cole Jones, Warner Lewis and Sean Berzins were named alongside Bagwell as CSC Academic All-District recipients. Despite other team members reaching both the academic and athletic standards for the achievement, only six were allowed to be nominated from VMI.
 
A two-time CSC Academic All-District recipient (2025, 2026), Bagwell earned First Team All-Conference honors this past season after leading the Northeast Conference and was ranked seventh overall in the NCAA in goals per game (3.0). On February 23, he was named as the NEC Player of the Week after scoring a combined 14 goals in games the week prior against the Naval Academy and Hampton.
 
Named an NEC Prime Performer four times throughout the 2026 season, Bagwell earned other accolades such as joining VMI’s exclusive 70-Goal Club as only the 18th Keydet in program history to reach the mark. He also joined VMI’s 100 Point Club, only the 23rd Keydet in program history to hit the milestone.
 
An outstanding cadet-athlete, he is a two-time NEC All-Academic Team honoree and achieved MAAC Honor Roll status in 2024 as a freshman.