BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – First year
Hannah Yaeger was selected as the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Rookie of the Year as six members of the St. Olaf College softball team were honored in the 2026 MIAC Softball Awards on Monday afternoon.
Yaeger was voted the Rookie of the Year by the conference's head coaches, becoming the third Ole to claim that honor (
Julie Graf '21 in 2017, Jessica Wilson '13 in 2010). Yaeger, junior
Eva Hokanson, junior
Regan Zak, and senior
Roxanne Ring were all named to the All-Conference Team, while senior
Belle Schmidt and junior
Rylan Nakamura were Honorable Mention All-MIAC selections. Yaeger and Ring also represented the Oles on the MIAC All-Playoff Team.
Yaeger claimed Rookie of the Year honors and was the lone first year on the All-MIAC list after ranking among the top hitters on the conference in a number of categories. In MIAC play, Yaeger led the conference in doubles (13) while ranking tied for third in total bases (51), tied for fourth in RBI (26), tied for fifth hit-by-pitches (3), seventh in OPS (1.224), eighth in slugging percentage (.718), tied for eighth in hits (30), 11th in on-base percentage (.506), 12th in runs (19), tied for 14th in walks (10), and 15th in batting average (.423), among hitters with at least 30 at-bats. Yaeger's All-Playoff Team nod came after she went 4-for-7 with two doubles, one home run, two runs scored, and one RBI.
Hokanson moved up from an honorable-mention selection last year to the All-MIAC list this season as a junior. Yaeger and Hokanson formed one of the top run-producing duos in the conference, as Hokanson finished tied for fifth in the MIAC in doubles (8), seventh in RBI (24), tied for 11th in hits (29), and tied for 18th in total bases (37) while hitting .408 against MIAC foes.
Zak was a constant threat at the top of St. Olaf's lineup while handling all 17 of her chances in center field without an error in MIAC play, leading to her second consecutive All-MIAC accolade. The junior led the conference in hits (43), triples (3), and stolen bases (20), while ranking second in runs scored (29), third in batting average (.551), fourth in on-base percentage (.593), fifth in total bases (49), eighth in OPS (1.221), and 19th in slugging percentage (.628), among hitters with at least 30 at-bats.
Ring was one of the top pitchers in the MIAC this season en route to her second All-MIAC accolade in a row. In her senior campaign, Ring led the MIAC in shutouts (3) while finishing second in innings pitched (75.0) and strikeouts (59), third in wins (10) and complete games (8), fourth in ERA (2.24), and ninth in opponent batting average (.272). She also hit .400 (10-for-25) with five doubles, one walk, three runs scored, and five RBI in conference games. Ring threw all 12.0 innings in St. Olaf's two playoff games, including throwing a four-hit shutout with two walks and eight strikeouts in the quarterfinal victory over Carleton College.
Schmidt started 12 of the 17 MIAC games she appeared in, hitting .467 (21-for-45) with a .520 on-base percentage to go with two doubles, five walks, three stolen bases, nine RBI, and 13 runs scored. The senior ended the season ranked seventh in the conference in batting average (.467) and eighth in on-base percentage in MIAC play among hitters with at least 30 at-bats.
Nakamura impacted the game offensively and defensively for St. Olaf, hitting .306 (15-for-49) with three doubles, eight walks, seven runs scored, and seven RBI, while recording 39 putouts and 35 assists without an error on 74 chances at second base.
