LOUISVILLE, Ky.  – Following the 2025 season, the first in which the Converse University softball team reached the postseason, seven student-athletes from the team earned National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-America Scholar-Athlete honors for their work in the classroom and on the field. These student-athletes are: graduate student Megan Monk, seniors AJ Albano and Sydney Watson, junior Jaydin Gentile, sophomore Ava Wells, and freshmen Addie Branen and Charley Swartzel.

A student-athlete must have a 3.5 GPA or higher to be recognized as a NFCA Scholar-Athlete.

Watson was also named a CSC Academic All-District selection for the second consecutive year on Tuesday, May 27. Last year, she became just the second Converse student-athlete, in any sport, to be named a CSC Academic All-American.

Albano graduated from Converse in May with a degree in child and family studies. She appeared in 49 games and made 29 starts for the Valkyries this season. She posted a .239 on-base percentage and drove in 11 runs.

Branen, a freshman from Moscow, Idaho, appeared in 42 games and made 31 starts. She hit .309 during her freshman campaign and scored 16 runs. She posted 11 RBIs while slugging .383 with a .406 on-base percentage.

Gentile, a junior English major from Melbourne, Florida, played in 33 games and made 24 starts. She posted a .233 batting average and a .361 on-base percentage. Gentile recorded nine RBIs this season and a .989 fielding percentage.

Monk, a graduate student from Tallahassee, Florida, appeared in 36 games and made 24 starts. She hit .295 and posted an on-base percentage of .375. Monk scored 20 runs and had a team-high 1.000 fielding percentage.

Swartzel, a freshman from Simpsonville, South Carolina, appeared in 48 games and made 47 starts, hitting .294 and slugging .449 in her debut campaign, both top-five among the team's qualified batters this season. 

Watson, a senior elementary education major from Plant City, Florida, is the program's first two-time all-conference honoree and the program's first first-team honoree, which she earned at the conclusion of the regular season. She led the Valkyries offensively with a .422 batting average, nine doubles, 11 home runs, 51 RBIs, 19 runs scored and a stolen base.

Wells, a sophomore chemistry major from Lithia, Florida, appeared in 31 games and made 22 starts, hitting .292 and slugging .333. She posted a .417 on-base percentage and scored 13 runs. Wells fielded at a .974 rate with 105 putouts.

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