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Sun Belt Conference Releases 2026 Softball Preseason Poll and Awards

The Sun Belt should be one of the deepest mid-major conferences this season.
Charles Mays|
Makayla McClain was voted to the Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
Makayla McClain was voted to the Preseason All-Sun Belt Team | App State Athletics

If someone wanted to follow a deep mid-major softball conference in 2026, look directly to the Sun Belt Conference.

On Wednesday, the league released its 2026 Softball Preseason Awards and Coaches Poll.

The preseason favorite should be of no surprise, as the Texas State Bobcats received 138 points and eight first-place votes. The Louisiana Monroe Warhawks were voted second with 113 points, followed by the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns, who brought in 109 points and one first-place vote. Coastal Carolina and Marshall rounded out the top five.

Texas State returns a great amount of production at the plate and in the circle from their 34-19 season, which saw them exit early in the competitive conference tournament to James Madison. That attests to how deep this conference is.

The Bobcats return first baseman Aiyana Coleman, who was named the SBC Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year in 2025, after slashing .421/.573/.893 with 17 home runs, 55 RBIs, and 22 runs scored. Coleman was also voted the preseason favorite for the 2026 SBC Player of the Year.

ULM, led by reigning Sun Belt Coach of the Year Molly Fichtner, returns off the winningest Sun Belt season in program history and its winningest season since 1997. The Warhawks posted 35 wins a season ago and return some great production in Brooklin Lippert and the Brown twins, Morgan and Meagan, who accounted for a combined 17 home runs with 122 RBIs. All three are listed on the preseason All-SBC Team.

Lippert, the junior outfielder from Loganville, Ga., started all 57 games in 2025, leading off for the Warhawks. The All-Sun Belt First-Teamer hit .416 with 10 RBIs, 53 runs scored, and 74 hits. Lippert was also fantastic on the basepaths with 31 stolen bases.

2026 Sun Belt Conference Softball Preseason Poll

  1. Texas State (8) – 138
  2. ULM – 113
  3. Louisiana (1) – 109
  4. Coastal Carolina (2) – 104
  5. Marshall (1) – 100
  6. App State – 85
  7. James Madison – 75
  8. Georgia Southern – 64
  9. Troy – 63
  10. South Alabama – 42
  11. Southern Miss – 29
  12. Georgia State – 14

The 15 players were voted to the Preseason All-Sun Belt Team, with Texas State and Louisiana Monroe leading the conference with three players each. The App State Mountaineers and James Madison Dukes also placed multiple selections with two each.

As mentioned above, Texas State's Aiyana Coleman was voted Preseason Player of the Year. For Preseason Pitcher of the Year, her teammate Madison Azua, the junior lefthander from Round Rock, Tex., garnered that selection.

Azua was as solid as they come in 2025. She recorded a 20-8 record with a 2.76 ERA across 170 innings in the circle last year. She tallied 187 strikeouts to just 34 walks and pitched 11 complete games in 26 starts.

Watch out for App State's second baseman Makayla McClain. McClain gets things going there in Boone, N.C. She was an All-Sun Belt first teamer in 2025 and was one of just three players in App State's history to hit at least 14 home runs.

She led the Mountaineers in several categories: 61 hits, a .381 batting average, slugging percentage of .744, OPS of 1.221, OBP of .477, 55 runs scored, 14 home runs, 50 RBIs, 119 total bases, and 27 walks. She will definitely be one to keep an eye on this season.

2026 Preseason All-Sun Belt Team

  • P Madison Azua (Texas State)
  • P Alana Barnard (Georgia Southern)
  • C Megan Kelnar (Texas State)
  • 1B Aiyana Coleman (Texas State)
  • 1B Georgia Hood (Coastal Carolina)
  • 2B Morgan Brown (ULM)
  • 2B Makayla McClain (App State)
  • 3B Olivia Branstetter (South Alabama)
  • 3B Cali Legzdin (James Madison)
  • SS Grace Barrett (App State)
  • OF Meagan Brown (ULM)
  • OF Hannah Christian (Southern Miss)
  • OF Diamond Leslie (Marshall)
  • OF Brooklin Lippert (ULM)
  • DP Payton List (James Madison)

Preseason Player of the Year: Aiyana Coleman (Texas State)

Preseason Pitcher of the Year: Madison Azua (Texas State)

Conference play begins the weekend of March 13-15, and the 2026 Sun Belt Conference Softball Championship will be played May 6-9 at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park in Lafayette, La.

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Charles Mays
CHARLES MAYS

Charles Mays is the owner of Mays SportsWire, LLC. Raised in Ridgely, Tenn., he currently resides in Knoxville, Tenn. He began his media career with Tomahawk Nation, part of SB Nation, where he covered Florida State athletics and also covered Clemson. In June of 2025, Mays launched Fastpitch Wire Softball to provide consistent coverage of the game at every level, an outlet that has consistently grown since its launch.

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