BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Prior to the beginning of the 2026 Great American Conference Championship Tournament, the league has released its end-of-the-year honors, as Team 28 tallied five All-GAC First Team members and three All-GAC Second Team members. The Muleriders also claimed two major awards at the conference banquet, as Emma Duncan was named the league's Pitcher of the Year along with Sophia Luetticke claiming the title of Newcomer of the Year. To add on to the accolades, Southern Arkansas tacked on three Elite Scholar-Athletes and 12 GAC Honor Roll members.
Emma Duncan - GAC Pitcher of the Year
The 2025-26 Dr. Margaret Downing Female Athlete of the Year adds to her end-of-the-year accolades, becoming the second-straight Mulerider to earn the honor of Pitcher of the Year in the Great American Conference. Duncan, a native of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec, Canada has been an elite arm in the GAC all throughout this campaign, as the graduate student led the league for the majority of the season in earned run average, now sitting at 1.48 (2nd GAC | 12th DII). Emma leads the league in numerous other categories, which include complete games (18), games started (31 | 3rd DII), hits allowed per seven innings (4.24 | 7th DII), innings pitched (189.2 | 8th DII), shutouts (8 | 7th DII), strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.15), strikeouts (195 | 12th DII), strikeouts per seven innings (7.2), WHIP (0.93 | 12th DII), and victories (25 | 3rd DII). The Canadian is also the lone pitcher in the conference to earn multiple GAC Pitcher of the Week plaudits.
Sophia Luetticke - GAC Newcomer of the Year
A native of Chillicothe, Missouri, the transfer has had a major impact on the Blue and Gold lineup, as Luetticke is second on the team in batting average (.425), which is the second-best in the league. Luetticke is the second Mulerider in the last three years to earn the honor, as Brinson Rogers won the award back at the end of the 2024 season. The Show-Me State local has been in the rotation all season long, with the graduate student starting in all 50 games. Luetticke currently ties for second in the conference for hits with 68, while also being the league's leader in runs scored this campaign with 57 (17th DII). Her 1.14 runs per game is also the highest average in the conference, and also ranks 24th nationally. Sophia has been very impressive on the bases as well, with the Missouri native being in the top-four for all stolen bases metrics. She is currently second in the league for stolen base percentage (.926), and fourth in total stolen bags and per game (25 | 0.50).
All-GAC First Team
Southern Arkansas led the field in first team members, with those members being Emma Duncan, Paris Endris, Maddie Leal, Sophia Luetticke, and Regan Dillon. The group holds many of the GAC's statistical category leaders, with Duncan's and Luetticke's statistics listed above, as Leal is the conference leader in batting average (.442) and ranks second in multiple categories, such as hits (68), on-base percentage (.557 | 12th DII), and walks per game (0.86 | 11th DII). Endris has been another great addition to the Blue and Gold, as the senior ranks in the top of the league in multiple categories, which include home runs (11 | 5th GAC), on-base percentage (.478 | 5th GAC), runs batted in (53 | 3rd GAC), RBIs per game (1.06 | 3rd GAC), sacrifice flies (4 | 2nd GAC), slugging percentage (.676 | 5th GAC), and walks per game (0.58 | 5th GAC). Dillon is also in the top five for walks drawn per game (0.60 | 4th GAC).
All-GAC Second Team
With three members selected to the league's second team, SAU ties for lead in members on the squad, with those being Kassie Rhodes, Payton Owens, and America Rubio. Rhodes claims her second-straight All-GAC plaudit after being named an Honorable Mention last season. Now a member of the second team, Rhodes was once again a member of the top pitching staff in the conference, as the Quitman, Arkansas native accounted for a 2.83 ERA and six complete games in her 21 game appearances, while also finishing the regular season with a 15-3 record. For Owens, the Tupelo, Oklahoma local has been a key piece of the Mulerider defense, as the senior currently has a .960 fielding percentage and has the second-most putouts of anyone in the infield with 77, while leading the team in assists with 67. This year, Payton has recorded a .277 batting average, as she has 39 hits and ties for the lead in doubles on the team, with 12. Much like Rhodes, Ame Rubio makes the promotion from honorable mention to second team, as the El Paso, Texas local had the third-highest batting average for Team 28, with a .410 average. Rubio has been the definition of a slugger this campaign, with the graduate student ranking third in the league for slugging percentage with a .736. Ame also ties for the team-lead in home runs (11) and is one of two Muleriders with multiple triples (2). With runners on base, Rubio has been heavily relied on in the three-hole, as she leads the GAC in RBIs per game (1.29 | 13th DII) and is second in the league for total runs batted in (54).
Elite Scholar-Athletes
Kinsley Birdwell
GPA: 4.00
Major: Biology: Pre-Health
Alyssa Noriega
GPA: 4.00
Major: Business Admin: Management
Peyton Raley
GPA: 4.00
Major: Psychology
GAC Honor Roll
Kelsie Adams
GPA: 3.92
Major: University Studies
Emalea Bailey
GPA: 3.86
Major: Mass Communications: TV & Sports Production
Jenny Bouthillier
GPA: 3.8
Major: Exercise Science: Strength & Conditioning
Regan Dillon
GPA: 3.72
Major: University Studies
Paris Endris
GPA: 3.94
Major: Biology
Jackie Kelner
GPA: 3.69
Major: Biology: Pre-Health
Sophia Luetticke
GPA: 4.00
Major: MBA Business Administration
Haylee Monden
GPA: 3.9
Major: Nursing
Karah Moore
GPA: 3.8
Major: Criminal Justice
Kassie Rhodes
GPA: 3.88
Major: Physical Education & Health K-12
Emma Thomson
GPA: 3.66
Major: Business Admin: General Business
Lena Walter
GPA: 3.96
Major: Engineering Science: Chemical Engineering
Team 28 is set to begin action at the Great American Conference Tournament on Thursday (May 7) at 3:30 PM with an opening round matchup against Henderson State Reddies.
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