WATCH: Kentucky star Evan Byers wins prestigious Elite 90 Award at 2024 College World Series

It was a joyful scene on Thursday as Evan Byers of the Kentucky Wildcats received NCAA's Elite 90 award for the 2024 Division I Baseball Championship at the opening night of the College World Series in Omaha.

According to the NCAA website, the Elite 90 is "given to the student-athlete with the highest CGPA participating at the finals" for each of the organization's 90 championships. To be eligible for the award, the student must at least be a sophomore and in their second playing year for the school.

How did Evan Byers win the Elite 90 award?

Byers won the award with a 4.0 GPA as an Animal Sciences major. He is a redshirt junior and has been a decent relief pitcher for the Kentucky Wildcats.

He made his collegiate debut in 2022 and has slowly risen through the ranks within his team. This year, he is 3-1 with a 5.32 earned run average in 23.2 innings over 21 games played.

Evan Byers and the Kentucky Wildcats remain in contention for the 2024 College World Series

Byers and the Kentucky Wildcats entered the 2024 baseball postseason as the second-seeded team, thanks to a 40-14 regular season record. The program then put on a dominant performance to progress from the Lexington Regionals, defeating Indiana State, Illinois and West Michigan to advance to the Super Regionals.

They defeated Oregon State at the Super Regionals to clinch their first-ever appearance at the College World Series. Hence, this is officially their most successful season in program history. Their next game is against NC State, who defeated Bryant, James Madison and South Carolina in the Raleigh Regionals, then Georgia in the Super Regionals.

Here's a look at what you need to know about their College World Series matchup against NC State:

• Date: Saturday, June 15, 2024
• Livestream: ESPN+ and FuboTV
• Time: 2 p.m.
• TV: ESPN
• Venue: Omaha