UCLA baseball has placed three players on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Preseason All-America teams. Junior shortstop Roch Cholowsky was named to the First Team, while junior first baseman Mulivai Levu and junior third baseman Roman Martin received Third Team honors.
These selections come after a significant 2025 season for the Bruins, which included a return to the Men’s College World Series for the first time since 2013. The team finished with a 48-18 record and shared the Big Ten regular-season title in its inaugural year in the conference.
Cholowsky enters 2026 following an award-filled season. He was named both Big Ten Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the first UCLA player to win both awards in a single season. He is also the first Bruin since 1998 to be recognized as conference player of the year. On a national level, Cholowsky became both the first UCLA player and first sophomore to win the Brooks Wallace Award for top shortstop. His other accolades include an ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove and Perfect Game’s National Player of the Year.
Statistically, Cholowsky led all Division I players with a 6.49 WAR. He posted a .353 batting average, .480 on-base percentage, .710 slugging percentage, hit 23 home runs, and drove in 74 runs. His OPS of 1.261 and slugging percentage of .761 were tops in the Big Ten Conference, and his home run total was the highest by any Bruin since 2000. Cholowsky scored 80 runs—one shy of UCLA’s single-season record—and his 179 total bases rank second in school history during college baseball’s Super Regional era.
Levu earned Third Team recognition after being named Second Team All-Big Ten last year. He ranked second nationally with 85 RBIs, batted .320 with 12 home runs, and started every game for UCLA. Defensively, he made only one error in 569 chances at first base and was awarded an ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove.
Martin also joins Levu on the Third Team after starting 65 games at third base last season and earning Second Team All-Big Ten honors. Martin hit .316/.450/.502 with 15 doubles, nine home runs, and drove in 61 runs while scoring 60 times and recording 119 total bases. He had 22 multi-hit games and set a new UCLA single-season record by being hit by pitches 21 times before another teammate surpassed him later that year.
