Kristjan Burkelca Named NAIA Men’s Golf Third Team All-American

| By: Brandon Stinson: Sports Information & Media Coordinator
May 28, 2026

KANSAS CITY, Mo.- Redshirt junior Kristjan Burkelca was named an NAIA Third Team All-American, announced by the national office on Thursday morning. 

With the selection, Burkelca becomes the 11th men's golfer in program history to earn All-American honors, and the third Battlin' Bear to do so since 2023.

Burkelca, a native of Domzale, Slovenia, put together another spectacular campaign in his second season with the program. He finished the year ranked No. 47 nationally in the Clippd Rankings, boasting an impressive adjusted scoring average of 71.9.

The redshirt junior captured two tournament victories this season, highlighted by his second consecutive Frontier Conference Individual Championship, which earned him Frontier Conference Player of the Year honors. Burkelca spent nearly the entire season ranked inside the national top 50, compiling a dominant 471-172-27 head-to-head record against NAIA competition.

He is the first Battlin' Bear to achieve All-American status since 2023, when Haydn Driver (Second Team) and William Dexheimer (Third Team) both took home honors. Notably, Burkelca was the lone representative from the Frontier Conference on this year's All-American teams.

Burkelca served as the anchor for a Battlin' Bears squad that captured its second straight Frontier Conference team title and secured a top-20 finish at the NAIA National Championships.
 

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