KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association announced new Athletes of the Week for week five of the 2026 softball season. Central Oklahoma swept this week’s honors with Rylee Lemos named the Hitter of the MIAA Week and Shelby Beard named the MIAA Pitcher of the Week.
MIAA HITTER OF THE WEEK: Rylee Lemos, Central Oklahoma
Rylee Lemos led No. 17 Central Oklahoma to a perfect 5-0 week at the Top Gun Midwest Sports Classic in Shawnee, Kansas, over the weekend. The senior All-American went 8-for-15 on the week with three doubles, a triple, and a home run. She also totaled seven RBI and scored six runs. Lemos opened the week 3-for-4 with a double, a triple and four RBI in the Bronchos 9-1 run-rule of Upper Iowa. She then went 2-for-4 with the homer in the 10-2 run-rule of Augustana. Lemos was 1-for-1 in the 9-1 victory against Minnesota-Duluth with two runs scored, then went 1-for-3 in the 4-3 win over Rockhurst with another double, and ended the weekend 1-for-3 against Moorehead with her third double of the week and another RBI. Lemos was also 3-for-3 on stolen bases and made three outs with no errors in the outfield.
MIAA PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Shelby Beard, Central Oklahoma
Shelby Beard led Central Oklahoma to three wins in five games over the weekend as the Bronchos collected five straight wins at the Top Gun Midwest Classic in Kansas. The junior pitcher went 3-0 with a 1.31 ERA and struck out 22 batters in 16 innings of work. She struck out eight in six innings in Friday’s 10-2 run-rule win over Augustana, then struck out six batters in five innings in Saturday’s 9-1 win over Duluth. On Sunday, Beard polished off the week with eight more strikeouts in five innings in the Bronchos’ 5-0 shutout of Minnesota State Moorhead.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
HITTERS
Alexis Mohr, Fort Hays State
Alexis Mohr had a three-home run day last Saturday at the Top Gun Midwest Classic. She hit three-run and two-run home runs against Quincy for an 8-7 win, then blasted a grand slam in a 16-8 win against Augustana. Mohr had all 10 of her RBIs for the week on Saturday. She slugged 1.857 for the week in her seven official at-bats, and added six other quality plate appearances with two walks, a hit-by-pitch, a sacrifice fly, and two sacrifice bunts.
Sydney Young, Missouri Western
Sydney Young started all five games at the Midwest College Classic and hit .588 (10-for-17) with four runs scored and eight RBI, adding one double and two home runs while posting a 1.000 slugging percentage and .632 on-base percentage. Game-by-game, Young went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI in an 8-5 win over Quincy on Feb. 26. In a 6-0 loss to Winona State on Feb. 27, she was held hitless, going 0-for-3. Later that day, she responded by going 2-for-3 with a run, two RBI, a double and a home run in a 9-4 win over Minnesota State Moorhead. On Feb. 28, Young finished 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI in a 7-0 victory against Bemidji State. She closed the weekend with a perfect 3-for-3 performance, scoring a run and driving in four RBI, had a home run and a walk in a 10-0 win over Concordia–St. Paul.
Makenzie Sais, Washburn
Makenzie Sais led the Ichabods to a 4-1 record last week at the Midwest College Classic with a .474 batting average, totaling nine hits in 19 at-bats. The sophomore center fielder also scored five runs and finished 7-for-7 in stolen bases. She had at least two hits in four of five games and stole three bases in the Ichabods’ 9-3 win over Bemidji State. She scored at least one run in each game as well.
PITCHERS
Harley Culie, Rogers State
Harley Culie appeared in all five games in the circle for the Hillcats in the Midwest Classic, finishing the weekend with a record of 2-1 and two saves. The senior put in 20.2 innings of work with 26 total strikeouts and seven walks. She recorded her 300th career strikeout in the win over Augustana, and added saves against Missouri S&T and Maryville.
Jadyn Streigle, Northwest Missouri
Jadyn Streigle went 2-0 with two complete games with a 0.50 ERA, allowing just one earned run in 14 innings pitched at the Midwest College Classic. Streigle tossed a six-hit shutout in a 5-0 win over Minnesota State, striking out five Maverick batters. She gained her second win of the weekend by allowing six hits and two runs (one earned) with three strikeouts in the Bearcats’ 6-2 win over Concordia-St. Paul.
Harley Pruetting, Missouri Western
Harley Pruetting delivered a strong weekend in the circle across three appearances for the Griffons. The senior right-hander posted a 2-0 record with a 2.21 ERA over 12.2 innings of work, allowing just four earned runs on 12 hits while striking out 16. Pruetting opened the weekend with four innings against Quincy, earning the win in an 8-5 victory. She followed with a solid relief outing against Winona State, striking out six over 2.2 innings and allowing just one earned run. Her top performance came against Concordia–St. Paul, where she tossed a complete-game shutout in a 10-0 win. In total, Pruetting scattered five hits, struck out seven, and did not allow a run over six innings to secure her second win of the weekend.
ALSO NOMINATED:
HITTERS – Carsen Tinkler [Missouri Southern], Brooke Flewelling [Emporia State], Cydney Fullerton [Central Missouri], RayLin Morgan [Rogers State], Sailor Hall [Pittsburg State]
PITCHERS – Hannah Butterbaugh [Emporia State], Riley Bebb [Central Missouri], Emily Davis [Missouri Southern], Korynn Tindel [Northeastern State], Sadie Walker [Washburn], Solana Carpenter [Fort Hays State]
WEEK ONE HITTER: Korynn Tindel, Northeastern State
WEEK ONE PITCHER: Emily Davis, Missouri Southern
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WEEK TWO HITTER: Katie Gray, Missouri Southern
WEEK TWO PITCHER: Harley Pruetting, Missouri Western
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WEEK THREE HITTER: Kalee Higdon, Missouri Western
WEEK THREE PITCHER: Sadie Walker, Washburn
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WEEK FOUR HITTER: Lexie Davis, Pittsburg State
WEEK FOUR PITCHER: Hannah Butterbaugh, Emporia State
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WEEK FIVE HITTER: Rylee Lemos, Central Oklahoma
WEEK FIVE PITCHER: Shelby Beard, Central Oklahoma