SXU Leads The Pack Again On Softball Postseason Honor Roll
CHICAGO, Ill. --- The Saint Xavier University softball program again proved to be the leader of the pack in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference in 2026. The Cougars swept both the league's regular-season and tournament crowns for the third year in a row during the season and came away with a convincing 17 postseason awards when the league office announced the sport's honor roll on Wednesday afternoon.
SXU also had the most first team all-conference selections (seven), the most overall choices (10), three of the top four individual award winners and four-of-nine Gold Glove picks.
Conference regular-season and tournament runner-up University of St. Francis was the only other program to boast double-figure award totals with its 12. The Fighting Saints also had the most second team all-league recipients with four.
A total of 54 awards were presented on Wednesday, including 20 on each of the two all-conference teams. After SXU and USF, next in line were Olivet Nazarene University and St. Ambrose University – which shared the league's regular-season runner-up designation with St. Francis – with six honorees each.
The rest of the roll call had three representatives each from Viterbo University and Calumet College of St. Joseph, two awards presented to the Judson University, Indiana University South Bend and Trinity Christian College programs and Mount Mary University earning one honor.
Headlining the list of winners was Saint Xavier shortstop Jazmyn Casas (Berwyn, Ill.), who was recognized as the CCAC Player of the Year. Her resume includes seven Top 10 marks in the conference and one at the NAIA national level.
Just a sophomore, Casas leads the league in runs batted in (84), home runs (11), total bases (117) and slugging percentage (.736) with her RBI total ranking second in the nation. Her other top league marks include a No. 6 standing in both doubles (15) and runs scored (45) and a No. 7 placement in hits (65).
Repeating as the CCAC Pitcher of the Year was Casas' teammate, Lily Strand (Evergreen Park, Ill.), who currently has 11 Top 10 marks in the league. Topping the list are her 18 complete games, which are the most in the conference.
The junior also holds down the runner-up spot in games started (27), wins (20, against 7 losses), innings pitched (157 2/3), strikeouts (130) and earned run average (2.62) and is third in appearances (30), shutouts (three), strikeouts per game (5.77) and batting average against (.218). Completing the list of Top 10 marks is her one save, which ties her for fifth.
Completing the trifecta of SXU individual award winners was Erin Mollohan-Corrao, who rang up her third consecutive CCAC Coach of the Year award. She has the Cougar program ranked No. 21 in the nation and heading to the NAIA World Series Opening Round with a 41-12 record.
Claiming the final top individual honor was St. Francis' Sarah Viar (Lockport, Ill.), who was named the CCAC Freshman of the Year. The second baseman currently leads the league in doubles (25), ranks fourth in total bases (100), has the sixth-most hits (69) and the ninth-best batting average (.421).
Eight of the 20 individuals named to the all-conference first team were a part of last year's same grouping. Saint Xavier's Mallory O'Connor (Bourbonnais, Ill.), who four years ago was named the CCAC Freshman of the Year, completed a four-year run on the first team. Teammate Aubrey Wroble (Crown Point, Ind.) and St. Ambrose's Becca Haag (Muscatine, Iowa) gained the first-team nod for the third year in a row, while SXU's Strand, Fiona Crane (Evergreen Park, Ill.), Payton Antkiewicz (Dyer, Ind.) and Haley Matlock (Indianapolis, Ind.) and St. Francis' Emily Hurst (Aurora, Ill.) were repeat choices.
On the Gold Glove Team, O'Connor, Crane and teammate Danielle Goodman (Poplar Grove, Ill.) were the three individuals to make the squad for the second year in a row.
Rounding out the list of awards, Judson claimed the conference's Champions of Character Team designation.
For the complete list of award winners, go to Awards.