NEW ORLEANS — The Sun Belt Conference announced its 2026 Softball Preseason All-Sun Belt Team, individual awards and preseason poll.
For the second year in a row, reigning regular season champion Texas State received 138 points and eight first-place votes to garner the crown as preseason favorite, according to a vote by the leagues head coaches. The Bobcats return 75.5 percent of their at bats and 96.8 percent of their innings pitched from last year’s roster that produced a 34-19 overall record and a 16-8 mark in Sun Belt play.
ULM was picked second with 113 points, followed by Louisiana in third with 109 points and one first place vote, reigning tournament champion Coastal Carolina in fourth with 104 points and two first place votes and Marshall in fifth with 100 points and one first place nod.
Texas State senior first baseman Aiyana Coleman - the reigning Sun Belt Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year - was voted as the conference’s 2026 Preseason Player of the Year, while teammate and junior left-handed pitcher Madison Azua was voted Preseason Pitcher of the Year for the second year in a row.
Coleman returns for the Bobcats as the Sun Belt’s leader in slugging percentage (.966), OPS (1.577), RBI (33) and walks (29) while boasting top-five marks in batting average (.431), on base percentage (.611) and home runs (10) in conference play last season. The College Station, Texas native was named to the 2025 NFCA All-Central Region Third Team and became Texas State's single-season record holder for home runs (17), RBI (55) and slugging percentage (.893).
A 2025 All-Sun Belt First Team pitcher, Azua compiled a 20-8 record and a 2.76 ERA across 170 innings in the circle last season. In conference play, the Round Rock, Texas native earned a league-leading 11 wins and 93 strikeouts in 90.2 innings of work while holding opposing hitters to a .215 batting average.
Texas State and ULM led all Sun Belt programs with three Preseason All-Sun Belt honorees apiece, while App State and James Madison also had multiple selections with two each.
The 2026 campaign begins Thursday, February 5, and the
2026 Sun Belt Conference Softball Championship will be held May 6-9 at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park in Lafayette, La.
2026 Sun Belt Conference Softball Preseason Awards
Preseason Player of the Year
Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Sr., 1B
– College Station, Texas)
Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Madison Azua, Texas State (Jr., LHP – Round Rock, Texas)
Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
P Madison Azua, Texas State (Jr., LHP – Round Rock, Texas)
P Alana Barnard, Georgia Southern (Sr., RHP – Statesboro, Ga.)
C Megan Kelnar, Texas State (Sr., C – Kyle, Texas)
1B Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Sr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
1B Georgia Hood, Coastal Carolina (Jr., 1B – Mount Gambier, Australia)
2B Morgan Brown, ULM (R-So., 2B – Katy, Texas)
2B Makayla McClain, App State (Sr., 2B – Liberty, N.C.)
3B Olivia Branstetter, South Alabama (Jr., 3B – Liberty, Mo.)
3B Cali Legzdin, James Madison (So., 3B – Beaver Falls, Pa.)
SS Grace Barrett, App State (Jr., SS – Milton, Ga.)
OF Meagan Brown, ULM (Jr., OF – Katy, Texas)
OF Hannah Christian, Southern Miss (So., OF – Hoover, Ala.)
OF Diamond Leslie, Marshall (So., OF – Alpharetta, Ga.)
OF Brooklin Lippert, ULM (Jr., OF – Loganville, Ga.)
DP Payton List, James Madison (R-Jr., DP – Beaver, Pa.)
2026 Sun Belt Conference Softball Preseason Coaches’ Poll
- Texas State (8) – 138
- ULM – 113
- Louisiana (1) – 109
- Coastal Carolina (2) – 104
- Marshall (1) – 100
- App State – 85
- James Madison – 75
- Georgia Southern – 64
- Troy – 63
- South Alabama – 42
- Southern Miss – 29
- Georgia State – 14
First-place votes in parentheses