The 2026 DII softball season is a bit more than halfway through. There have been plenty of home runs, hit streaks and hot starts to note, but there have also been some impressive freshmen through the first 30 or so games of the season.
🏆 Here are the DII softball programs with the most national championships
Whether they have over-the-fence power, are fleet of foot on the base paths, or consistently barrel up on the ball to get it in play, these 10 freshmen have already left their mark.
DII softball freshmen to watch
(All stats through March 26. .)
Bella Holland, West Texas A&M. The Buffs have reached No. 1 in DII softball, sitting at 29-3 and winners of 16 straight. Holland has stepped into the lineup and clearly made a difference right off the proverbial and literal bat. The outfielder is leading the team in batting average, with her .531 mark leading all freshmen and top 6 in DII. She is second on the Buffs in OPS (1.481) and her 39 runs scored are also tops among all freshmen. She’s also shown both pop and base-running savvy, adding seven home runs and going 9-for-9 in stolen base attempts. She just saw a 14-game hitting streak — 11 of those games being multi-hit games — come to an end, but Holland is very much in the zone.
Zoey Sifuentes, Angelo State. Staying in the Lone Star Conference, Sifuentes has stepped into the lineup and has been a driving force in the Rambelles 27-6 start. She is leading the team in nearly every offensive category with a .444 batting average, 1.382 OPS and seven home runs. Her 15 doubles are the most among all freshmen and a top 7 mark in DII, while her 42 RBIs lead all freshmen and are a top 10 mark in all DII. Having to contend with two-time defending national champion UT Tyler, No. 1 West Texas A&M and nationally ranked Oklahoma Christian in their own conference is brutal enough, but having a bat like Sifuentes in the lineup sure has helped the Rambelles keep pace and look tournament-bound yet again.
Sadie Cecil, Mars Hill. The Lions were 22-24 a year ago, and before the calendar has even hit April, they have surpassed that win total, sitting at 24-6. Their freshman infielder has certainly been the sparkplug to ignite the turnaround. Cecil is among the SAC top three in both batting average (.440) and RBIs (36). She has also belted five home runs and has team-high 1.230 OPS. She closed February with a wild eight-game RBI streak where she drove in 17 runs over that span.
Tranasia Parker, Albany State (GA). Last year, Albany State’s lineup slugged a mere 13 home runs, with Avery Fisher supplying more than half of those with seven. This year, the Golden Rams added some pop with their rookie outfielder. Parker has been solid through the first 22 games of her career. She is hitting .441 with a team-best 1.563, leading the SIAC with a 1.076 slugging percentage behind a SIAC-best 11 home runs, which is also tops among all DII freshmen. She’s blasting a home run once in every six at bats and has driven in the second-most runs on her team. The Rams are 21-6 and with Parker and Fisher in the lineup, the wins should keep rolling.
Laila Ruiz, Maryville (MO). The Saints may not have the best record, sitting at 15-15 overall, but they are absolutely destroying the softball so far in 2026. They have slugged 34 home runs in 30 games, which is a top 10 mark in DII. Ruiz, a rookie first baseman, has been part of the pow wow in Maryville, already slugging nine home runs on the season, second-most on the team. She’s hitting .326 with a 1.102 OPS while adding 30 RBIs, giving the Saints a formidable, run-producing trio in Jenna Kosnoff, Laila Ruiz and Addison Koth — who have hit 28 of those home runs — atop their batting order.
Kaitlyn Fletcher and Kenya Tatum, Tuskegee. What's better than one fantastic freshmen in your lineup? How about two? The Golden Tigers top two hitters are Fletcher and Tatum, a pair of freshmen leading the way for the 21-7 West Division leaders. Tatum, and infielder, leads the team with a .494 average and a 1.308 OPS with four home runs, 29 RBIs and seven stolen bases. Fletcher, who roams the outfield, is second on the team with a .397 average and 1.241 OPS with a team-high six home runs to go with eight stolen bases.
Haley Gallo, Central Oklahoma. The Bronchos power-hitting outfielder is off to a hot start for her career. Through 33 games, she is hitting .358 with a team-high 1.184 OPS and eight home runs. She's also driven in 36 runs — a top 10 mark among freshmen — and scored 25 more. The MIAA is stacked once again, and the Bronchos are in the middle of the pack, but do sit at 25-9 overall. They will need Gallo's bat to stay hot for a chance at another trip to the tournament.
Malyiah Smith, Carson-Newman. Not every star player has to be a home run slugger. Smith, the Eagles utility rookie, has been a spark to the team in many different ways despite not hitting a home run 35 games into her career. Smith is hitting .415 with a .899 OPS. She leads the SAC with 19 stolen bases and is tied for third in the conference with 35 runs scored. She sets the table atop the order, and with that kind of speed and run-scoring prowess, the Eagles should continue to score runs and add to their 27 wins.
Abigail Hynes, Saint Leo. The Lions are 28-2-1 and No. 6 in DII softball. No. 1 on their team in several offensive categories is their big-hitting freshman first baseman. Hynes leads the team with a .444 batting average while posting a 1.209 OPS. She's tied for the team lead with six home runs and has a team-high 36 RBIs. She hits third in the lineup, so there should be plenty more opportunities for RBIs if she can keep it going.
The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NCAA or its member institutions.
