SIOUX CITY, Iowa — The Great Plains Athletic Conference has released the 2026 All-Conference teams for Softball.
Dakota Wesleyan’s selections were headlined by four First Team honorees. Sophomore pitcher Alison Ernsberger, out of Granville, Ohio, earned her second First Team All-GPAC award off the back of a 2.59 ERA (7th in the GPAC) on the season, 16 wins (4th in the GPAC), and 170 total strikeouts (3rd in the GPAC). Her efforts helped establish one of the conference’s best defensive units this season, and would work in tandem with another First Team All-GPAC honoree, Jordyn Blogg. The senior catcher out of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, tallied a .341 batting average at the plate and was one of the GPAC’s top defenders behind the plate as well, being established as a staple of the starting lineup during the 2026 campaign. Blogg also recorded 32 RBIs and six home runs throughout the course of 50 contests.
Outfielder Alessandra Ciurca would also be named First Team All-Conference following a campaign where she ranked third in stolen bases with 24. The junior out of League City, Texas, was also a major contributor in batting order with a .409 batting average and .487 on-base percentage, able to tally 12 RBIs on the year.
The final First Team All-GPAC player would be infielder Avery Perkins. The sophomore out of Woodridge, Illinois, tied for a team-leading seven home runs on the year alongside a .348 batting average and .591 slugging percentage, ranking 14th in the conference in the statistic. Her 36 RBIs would tie for second in the DWU lineup this season.
Ashlen Johnson, an infielder out of Sioux Falls, and Macy Moore, a junior out of Holbrook, Arizona, would both be named Second Team All-GPAC as crucial contributors to the team’s successes this season. Johnson would record the team’s second-highest batting average at .358 and was able to contribute 30 RBIs on the year, including a team-leading 16 doubles and six home runs. Moore put up a .341 batting average and contributed 36 RBIs, alongside 18 steals, finishing second in the lineup just behind Ciurca.
Liliana Arreola (Eagar, Ariz.) earned Honorable Mention status with a .335 batting average and team-leading 41 RBIs, alongside Kassidy Lopez (Mesa, Ariz.), who had an elite defensive season and major presence on the basepaths. The final Tiger to earn an Honorable Mention distinction was Mandalyn Nachtigall (Rapid City, S.D.), who recorded 13 wins in the circle and posted a 4.15 ERA on the season.