By JASON PUGH, Northwestern State Sports Information
NATCHITOCHES – Shreveport native Kevin Robinson made plenty of memories on the mound in his first season in a Northwestern State baseball uniform this spring, while another recently unfolded off the field and will send him in street clothes onto a national platform.
It came via word from the Southland Conference, which selected Robinson as the league’s male representative for the 2024 NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The event takes place Nov. 21-24.
Robinson is a member of Northwestern’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and NSU’s Presidential Leadership Program and spent his summer coaching high school age baseball players.
He was surprised by his selection, just as much as his quick success on the diamond was unexpected, he said.
“It’s nothing that I thought would happen in the first year or so,” Robinson said. “I’m excited to get to meet a bunch of people from around the country and expand my network.”
Robinson went from a walk-on to the Demons’ midweek starter as a freshman, posting a 3-1 record and a 2.73 ERA that ranked second on the team. His 5-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio led the Demons as did his 1.09 walks per nine innings number.
A C.E. Byrd graduate who was the Outstanding Player on the 2023 Shreveport-Bossier Journal All-Metro Baseball Team, Robinson became a focal figure in his true freshman season at Northwestern.
He gave the Demons stability in midweek games and his nine starts were third most on the roster. The son of former Louisiana Tech player Daniel Robinson was the starting pitcher in the Demons’ 11-5 win against the Bulldogs on March 12 at Brown-Stroud Field.
He was the winning pitcher in the Demons’ first shutout of the season against LSU-Alexandria on April 16 and was the winning pitcher in both games of a season sweep of state rival Grambling.
His off-field impact in his SAAC role and as a leader on campus, coupled with his baseball success, earned him nomination for the Southland honor.
“This is a very special opportunity for Kevin as an individual,” head coach Chris Bertrand said. “His selection shows he represents all the characteristics we stand for. It shows we are on the right track of bringing in incredible student-athletes into the program and into he university. Once they’re here, we put them in an environment that helps them thrive. To have that recognized by the Southland Conference and the NCAA, there is no better compliment to Kevin and to the program.”
The NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum provides a diverse representation of student-athletes, coaches and administrators with an opportunity to build a leadership toolkit and develop self-awareness. Participants leave the program with leadership skills, an exploration of values, beliefs and behavioral styles and an understanding of the NCAA as a whole and the value of Student-Athlete Advisory Committees. The forum also creates a network of like-minded peers for continued connection and dialogue.
It also reinforces Robinson’s success and impact on and off the mound.
“Nothing that has happened is anything I thought would have expected coming in here 12 months ago,” said the well-traveled Robinson, who will visit North Carolina for the first time in November. “It’s really cool. It proves to me the work I’m putting in off the field is coming to fruition.”
Contact Jason at pughj@nsula.edu