NEW ORLEANS – The Sun Belt Conference’s 2025 softball season was filled with historic achievements and moments, as the league looks back on the successes of the most recent campaign.
CHAMPIONSHIP CHANTS: Coastal Carolina (42-19) won its first Sun Belt softball championship in program history with four wins in as many days at the Troy University Softball Complex in Troy, Ala. Seeded seventh, the Chanticleers became the lowest-seeded team to win the tournament while defeating No. 10 seed Southern Miss, No. 2 seed Marshall, No. 3 seed Louisiana and No. 9 seed James Madison in the championship game to secure the Sun Belt’s automatic bid to the 2025 NCAA Softball Championship. Senior left-hander Nicolette Picone threw every pitch in four complete-game victories in the circle to earn Sun Belt Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
DURHAM REGIONAL: Sun Belt champion Coastal Carolina made its sixth NCAA Regional appearance in program history and first since 2012 in Durham, N.C. The Chanticleers led in all three of their games in the regional which included a win over Howard and losses to Georgia and No. 14 national seed Duke.
RPI RUNDOWN: Six Sun Belt softball programs finished the 2025 season listed among the top 100 of the NCAA’s final RPI rankings which was tied for the most by non-autonomy conferences. Coastal Carolina led the league at No. 43 followed by No. 51 Texas State, No. 55 Louisiana, No. 82 Marshall, No. 95 ULM and No. 99 Georgia Southern.
HOOD SO GOOD: Coastal Carolina junior first baseman Georgia Hood earned NFCA All-America Third Team honors, becoming just the sixth Sun Belt player in the last three seasons and first Chanticleer to be recognized in conference history. An All-Sun Belt First Team selection each of the last two seasons, Hood led the league lead in home runs (21), tied for first in batting average (.421) and finished second in on-base percentage (.547) and slugging percentage (.872) while placing third in RBI (57).
WARHAWKS WARRANTY: ULM (35-22) led the Sun Belt with 500 total hits and a .332 team batting average, tying for the fifth-highest single-season mark in conference history. That mark also ranked 20th nationally, as the Warhawks also paced the Sun Belt with a .333 average in league play which was 37 points higher than the No. 2 team in that category. ULM started the season 22-0 on its home field. ULM’s 35 victories were its most since 1997 and its 14 conference wins established a program record.
COASTAL CRUSH: Coastal Carolina belted 93 home runs during its 2025 campaign – the fourth most by a Sun Belt program in a season in league history. The home run total and the Chanticleers’ 1.52 longballs per game ranked 10th in the country, respectively. The Chants had three Sun Belt’s top five home run hitters and four of the top 10 including No. 1 Georgia Hood (21), No. 2 Delaney Keith (20), No. 4 Keirstin Roose (three tied with 15) and No. 7 Maddy Jennings (three tied with 14). Hood and Keith made Coastal Carolina one of just five teams nationally with multiple 20-home-run hitters.
TURNING TWO: Louisiana (29-25) finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in double plays turned with 35 and No. 2 in double plays per game (0.65). The Ragin’ Cajuns were one of six Sun Belt teams among the top 50 in the country in double plays turned ahead of No. 14 ULM (29), No. 32 Georgia Southern and Marshall (25), No. 37 Coastal Carolina (24) and No. 44 Troy (23).
AIYANA’S ART: Texas State junior first baseman Aiyana Coleman became just the third player in conference history to earn awards for both Sun Belt Player and Newcomer of the Year in the same season along with Louisiana’s Ciara Bryan in 2021 and Becky McMurtry in 2002. In leading Texas State to its second regular season title in program history, she hit 17 home runs with 55 RBI, while her .421 batting average tied for the league lead. Additionally, her .573 on-base percentage ranked eighth nationally while her 15th-ranked slugging percentage (.893) ranked fifth in Sun Belt history and was the highest by a player in the league since 2017.
PICONE’S PRESTIGE: Coastal Carolina senior lefty Nicolette Picone ranked among the nation’s leaders in multiple statistical categories during the 2025 season, ranking second in complete games (26) and innings pitched (248.0), third in wins (29), starts (37) and appearances (49) and 13th in saves (5). She became the first pitcher in Sun Belt history with at least 25 wins five saves in the same season and the fifth to lead the conference in both categories. Picone became the seventh different hurler and ninth overall to be named Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year and Tournament MVP in the same year.
ACCOLADE ARMORY: Sun Belt Conference softball players garnered an array of national recognition through the conclusion of the 2025 season:
NFCA All-America
Third Team
Georgia Hood, 1B, Coastal Carolina
Softball America Freshman All-America
Morgan Brown, 2B, ULM
Maddie Johnson, P, Georgia Southern
NFCA All-Gulf Region
Second Team
Taylor McKinney, OF, Troy
Third Team
Emily Smith, 1B, Louisiana
Morgan Brown, 2B, ULM
NFCA All-Mid-Atlantic Region
Second Team
Makayla McClain, 2B, App State
Payton List, UT/P, James Madison
NFCA All-South Region
First Team
Georgia Hood, 1B, Coastal Carolina
Second Team
Nicolette Picone, P, Coastal Carolina
Keirstin Roose, 2B, Coastal Carolina
Delaney Keith, 3B, Coastal Carolina
Third Team
Maddie Johnson, P, Georgia Southern
NFCA All-Central Region
Third Team
Aiyana Coleman, 1B, Texas State
2025 CSC Academic All-American
Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina
2025 CSC Academic All-District
*Grace Barrett, App State
Ava Beamesderfer, App State
Marti Henkel, App State
Sophie Moshos, App State
Summer Simpson, App State
Clara Hudgens, Coastal Carolina
Brie Normandin, Coastal Carolina
*Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina
Libby Pippin, Coastal Carolina
*Keirstin Roose, Coastal Carolina
Faith Barth, Georgia Southern
Valerie Combs, Georgia Southern
Emma Davis, Georgia Southern
Bailey Holland, Georgia Southern
Delanie Thames, Georgia Southern
Kate Kastelic, Georgia State
Emily Hodnett, Georgia State
Chloe Middlebrooks, Georgia State
Maia Mumpfield, Georgia State
Ashton Schroyer, Georgia State
Madison Edwards, James Madison
Kirsten Fleet, James Madison
Kayla Falterman, Louisiana
Maddie Hayden, Louisiana
Mia Liscano, Louisiana
Sam Ryan, Louisiana
Cecilia Vasquez, Louisiana
*Meagan Brown, ULM
*Morgan Brown, ULM
Elle Carter, ULM
Carys Platt, ULM
Maryssa Zenzen, ULM
Haleigh Adkins, Marshall
Abby Darnley, Marshall
Bub Feringa, Marshall
Chandler Hoskins, Marshall
Rielly Lucas, Marshall
*Olivia Branstetter, South Alabama
Sidney Lee, South Alabama
Amity White, South Alabama
Claire Ginder, Southern Miss
Natalie Herrington, Southern Miss
Ryanna Valdivia, Southern Miss
Sydney Harvey, Texas State
*Megan Kelnar, Texas State
Emma Strood, Texas State
Keely Williams, Texas State
Cassidy Boltz, Troy
*Alyssa Faircloth, Troy
*McKinnon Howard, Troy
Savannah Money, Troy
Natalie Turner, Troy
*indicates national finalist