Mariah Galhouse, Gwen McGinnis Recognized as All-Americans at NFCA Banquet
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Fifty-six student-athletes from 43 different institutions have been voted to one of three 2025 NFCA Division II All-America teams, the Association revealed on Wednesday evening at the NCAA Division II Championship banquet at the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga. NCAA South Region champion University of Tampa had two players honored, with both Mariah Galhouse and Gwen McGinnis earning All-American honors as part of the second team.
Leading the way in 2025 is the NCAA Division II Championship Finals No. 1 overall seed University of Texas at Tyler, which boasted five All-Americans, two each on the first and second teams and one more on the third.
Galhouse, a senior pitcher/outfielder from Spring Hill, Fla., is now a three-time All-American. The University of Tampa Female Athlete of the Year, which encompasses all UT women's sports, carries a 17-2 record in the circle with a 0.56 ERA. In 137.1 innings, she has registered 57 strikeouts to go with a 0.87 WHIP. She is also hitting .293 with three home runs and 39 RBI as a two-way player. She is also the program's all-time leader in hits (240), RBI (163) and total bases (340) while ranking second in runs (136), wins (80) and saves (6).
McGinnis, a junior pitcher from Tallahassee, is honored for the first time as an All-American. In 26 games in the circle, McGinnis is 15-5 with one save. She has accumulated 125.2 innings this season, notching a team-best 108 strikeouts. She also sports a 0.90 WHIP.
Nine other programs – Angelo State University, Francis Marion University, Lenoir-Rhyne University, Missouri Southern State University, Saginaw Valley State University, Tusculum University, University of Central Oklahoma, University of Tampa and West Texas A&M University – each had two All-America plaudits.
Highlighting the honorees is Jessup University's Sarah Giles, who is now a four-time NFCA All-American. With this year's unanimous Division II selection at first base, Giles has also earned first-team status as a member of the NAIA (2024) and Cal JC with the College of San Mateo (2021 & 2022). It is also Jessup's first Division II All-America honor.
Joining Giles as unanimous first-team selections were University of Minnesota Duluth's Nicole Schmidt (second base), UT Tyler's JT Smith (outfield), West Texas A&M's Emilee Boyer (Joan Joyce/Utility Pitcher) and Catawba College's Brianna Gallagher (DP or Utility/Non-Pitcher). Schmidt started a trend at second base as the second team's Marissa Mitchell from University of West Alabama and third-teamer Madison Primm from Lenoir-Rhyne University were also unanimous selections. Additionally, Tampa's Mariah Glahouse (utility pitcher) and Eckerd College's Hannah Taylor (DP or Utility/Non-Pitcher) were unanimous second-team selections.
Central Oklahoma's Terin Ritz, a first-team at-large selection at Utility/Pitcher, Galhouse and third team at-large shortstop Lauren Harris from McKendree University each earned their third consecutive All-America honors. It marked the second first-team nod for the senior Ritz.
Twelve more student-athletes collected their second All-America plaudits with East Stroudsburg sophomore pitcher Sarah Davenport named to the first team for the second consecutive year, while UT Tyler's Smith earned her second first-team award, the first coming in 2023. Other second-time All-Americans on the first team are Hillsdale pitcher Joni Russell, WT's Boyer and her teammate Lauren Granger (at-large catcher) and Pace University hurler Gisselle Garcia (at-large pitcher). First base selection Sarah Giles from Jessup is also a first-teamer for the second straight season, capturing the honor last year when the program was in the NAIA.
Second teamers earning their second straight honor are Augustana pitcher Grace Glanzer, Valdosta State first baseman Aniston Gano, West Alabama's Mitchell and Pittsburg State shortstop Heather Arnett. On the third-team, Angelo State pitcher Cheyenne Floyd and Colorado Mesa University shortstop (at-large) Myah Arrieta are repeat All-Americans.
Additionally, 41 student athletes are receiving their first-ever NFCA Division II All-America award with four programs on the Division II list for the first time. Tiffin University's Jessica Miller (1st team outfield) , Cal State East Bay's Marissa Quintero (3rd team pitcher) and Bentley University's Jordan Krause (3rd team outfield) have the honor of being their program's first-ever NFCA All-Americans, while Tusculum University's Danielle Jason (1st team outfield) and Brooke Smith (3rd team at-large second base) are the first during the Pioneers' NCAA Division II era. Tusculum previously collected All-America plaudits as an NAIA program.
Coming off the heels of being named the 2025 NFCA Freshman of the Year on May 20, University of North Georgia's Carleigh Knowles is the 2025 Diamond Sports/NFCA Division II Catcher of the Year. A first-team All-America selection at catcher, Knowles is having a sizzling rookie campaign leading the NightHawks to a NCAA Division II finals appearance. She is batting .393 with a team-best 21 home runs and 68 RBI to go along with an .822 slugging percentage, a .452 on-base percentage and 13 stolen bases. Behind the dish, Knowles has made just one miscue in 340 attempts and thrown out 10 would-be base stealers.
Leah Oberkehr, a junior outfielder from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, was voted the New Balance/NFCA Golden Shoe Award winner. She finished 2025 swiping 50 bases in 51 attempts, the second highest total in Division II. Her 1.06 steals per game is tops in NCAA Division II and .980 percentage is third amongst players with 30-plus steals. Oberkehr batted .335 and scored a team-best 42 runs.
Fourteen All-Americans hailing from seven programs are representing their teams at the 2025 NCAA Division II Championships, which begins on May 23 at Frost Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn.
The NFCA All-America teams are voted on by the Association's All-America Committees. In Division II, the committee is comprised of one member head coach from each of the NCAA's eight regions. All student-athletes who were nominated by a member head coach and voted to the first- or second-team All-Region squads were eligible for All-America consideration.
The NFCA is the professional organization for fastpitch softball coaches. Known for its highly-regarded All-America awards, the NFCA also educates and supports softball coaches on a variety of different levels: from podcasts to awards, to in-person events and National Convention.