LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Virginia Wesleyan’s Hannah Hearl and Piedmont’s Anslee Sauchegraw captured the latest Division III Wilson/NFCA Pitcher and Louisville Slugger/NFCA Player of the Week honors of the 2026 season on Tuesday.
Hearl, a sophomore pitcher from Orange County, Va., went 3-0, including a no-hitter against then-No. 9 Christopher Newport, to help catapult the unbeaten (8-0) Marlins into the top spot in this week’s NFCA/GoRout Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll. The right-hander stuck out 24 and allowed just five hits and three walks over 18 innings in the circle overall. She also picked up the win in the other game of a doubleheader sweep of the Captains, and defeated Tufts and Greensboro, holding all batters to a .083 average.
Sauchegraw, meanwhile, hit .556 (15-for-27) with three doubles, six home runs, 16 RBI, five walks, a .625 on-base average and a 1.333 slugging percentage. The freshman shortstop from Covington, Ga., had two two-homer games and drove in four or more runs in three of her six contests, which included matchups with then-No. 12 Randolph-Macon and then-No. 25 Salisbury.
Other Top Performances
Gianna Adams, Carnegie Mellon – 5-0, 1.72 ERA, 24 K, 20.1 IP; Mackenzie Cauthorn, Bridgewater (Va.) – 2-1, 0.78 ERA, 18 IP, 11 H, BB, 18 K, 2 CG, SHO; Reagan Diamond, Carnegie Mellon – .591 AVG, 3 2B, 10 RBI, .793 SLG; Alyssa Edwards, Hartford – .571 AVG, 1.143 SLG, 2 R, HR, 3 RBI, SB in first action since missing 2025 season; Ava Fouts, Berry – .473 AVG, 6 R, 2 2B, 4 RBI, .579 SLG, 3-0, 2.20 ERA, 3 CG, 11 K, snapped then-No. 1 Trine’s 22-game win streak and shut out then-No. 8 East Texas Baptist; Avery Holland, East Texas Baptist – 3-0, 0.74 ERA, BB, 19 K, 19 IP, 3 CG, .149 OPP AVG; Ragini Kannan, Brandeis – 3-0, 0.39 ERA, 18 IP, 2 BB, 22 K, .056 OPP AVG, no-hitter vs. Emmanuel; Olivia Knight, Virginia Wesleyan – .529 (9-for-17), 5 R, 2 HR, 13 RBI; Alexis Larson, Wartburg – .466/.500/.933, 4 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 5-5 SB, 1.000 FLD; Emma LaFave, Simpson – fanned seven over first four innings of combined no-hitter vs. Westminster (Mo.); Haley Leimbach, Tufts – .480 (12-for-25), 10 R, 3 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 2 SB, .720 SLG, .500 OBP; Sadie Leonard, Williams – two-hitter vs. Springfield, 15 K, including striking out the side in first, third, fifth and seventh; Nikki Lusnia, Kean – 2-1, 0.00 ERA, 15.1 IP, 23 K, 0 ER, no-hitter vs. Penn State-Behrend; Emily Meyer, Bethany Lutheran – 3-1, 21.1 IP, 20 K, 1.64 ERA; Piper Morton, East Texas Baptist – .438 AVG, 3 R, 2B, 3B, 6 RBI; McKenna Mueller, Bridgewater (Va.) – .476 AVG, 10 H, 2 2B, 4 RBI; Jillian Panther, Wartburg – 3-0, 3 ER, 18.2 IP, one-hitter vs. New England College; Olivia Sanborn, Bethany Lutheran – .526 AVG, 10 H, 3B, 2 RBI, 3 BB, 7-8 SB; Kiran Sanford, Wisconsin-Oshkosh – 7 IP, H, 0 BB, 0 ER, 18 K; Ashlyn Steen, Simpson – .714 (5-for 7), 3 R, 3 3B, 2 RBI, 2 SB; Olivia Tautges, Saint Benedict – .583 (14-for 24), 3 2B, 3B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 0 K, 27 TB, 1.135 SLG, 1.725 OPS, multiple hits in four of six games; Sarah Watts, Lynchburg – .500 AVG, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 4 SB, 1.062 SLG; Kadence Woodlief, Averett – .500 AVG, 2B, 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 1.050 SLG, 13 PO, 9 A, 1.000 FLD.
Winners are selected by the NFCA Division III Top 25 Committee, which has a representative for each of the 10 NCAA regions.
2026 Wilson/NFCA Division III National Pitcher of the Week
March 10 — Hannah Hearl, Virginia Wesleyan, So., RHP, Orange County, Va.
March 3 — Katelyn Howard, Texas Lutheran, Sr., RHP, Waller, Texas
2026 Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division III National Player of the Week
March 10 — Anslee Sauchegraw, Piedmont, Fr., SS, Covington, Ga.
March 3 — Reagan Hill, Randolph-Macon, Sr., 1B, Hanover, Va.
2026 NFCA Division III Top 25 Committee
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