Troy University Athletics
Trio of Trojans Earn All-Sun Belt Honors
5/6/2025 2:50:00 PM | Softball
TROY, Ala. – Troy softball racked up three All-Sun Belt honorees, led by Taylor McKinney on All-Sun Belt First Team and followed by Alyssa Faircloth and McKinnon Howard on All-Sun Belt Second Team, the league office announced Tuesday afternoon.
"We are excited that these three players have been selected as Sun Belt All-Conference recipients," head coach Eric Newell said. "All-conference recognition is always special because your opponent's vote on it. This trio was definitely worthy, and we are very proud that they represent Troy softball."
McKinney led the Trojans all season in nearly every category, including slugging percentage (.768), runs (54), hits (63), RBIs (53), doubles (12) – tied with Makaley Boswell –, triples (3), homers (15), total bases (126), walks (30), sac flies (4) and on-base percentage (.485). Her 54 runs currently tie her for the most in a Troy single season while ranking 39th in the country. The Montgomery, Ala. native earned her third straight All-Sun Belt Team recognition after breaking the program record for the longest reached-base streak of 39 – she reached base safely in all 24 league games. The senior outfielder was a five-tool player, going 8-for-8 in stolen bases and fielding a 97.7 percentage.
Faircloth dominated the circle throughout 2025 with 15 victories to rank 66th in the country while punching out 146 batters to sit 42nd nationally – her 6.9 strikeouts per seven innings ranked 84th in D-I softball. The sophomore led the Sun Belt Conference with 5.04 hits allowed per seven innings and four shutout appearances, becoming the first pitcher in Troy history since Leanna Johnson with multiple shutouts through conference play in a single season.
Howard rounded out the trio of Trojans after leading the program with 14 stolen bases, which ranked ninth in the league. In her 53 games, she had 106 at-bats and 47 hits to hit a .443 clip break the single-season record by a Trojan. Against top-tier competition, Howard stayed consistent, having a .438 batting average on 14 hits, a .438 slugging percentage and a .471 on-base percentage for a .909 OPS. The sophomore outfielder also hammered multiple hits in 12 games, with three coming against Louisiana in the program's first-ever series win.
The trio of All-Sun Belt honorees look to Wednesday, May 7, at 7 p.m., where they face James Madison in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament at the Troy Softball Complex.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Softball Postseason Awards
Player of the Year: Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Jr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
Pitcher of the Year: Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina (Sr., LHP – Bethpage, N.Y.)
Newcomer of the Year: Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Jr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
Freshman of the Year: Emily Smith, Louisiana (Fr., 1B – Kountze, Texas)
Coach of the Year: Molly Fichtner, ULM
All-Sun Belt First Team
P Madison Azua, Texas State (So., LHP – Round Rock, Texas)
P Maddie Johnson, Georgia Southern (Fr., RHP – Athens, Ga.)
P Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina (Sr., LHP – Bethpage, N.Y.)
C Megan Kelnar, Texas State (Jr., C – Kyle, Texas)
1B Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Jr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
2B Morgan Brown, ULM (R-Fr., 2B – Katy, Texas)
2B Makayla McClain, App State (Jr., 2B – Liberty, N.C.)
3B Olivia Branstetter, South Alabama (So., 3B – Liberty, Mo.)
SS Grace Barrett, App State (So., SS – Milton, Ga.)
OF Meagan Brown, ULM (So., OF – Katy, Texas)
OF Hannah Christian, Southern Miss (Fr., OF – Hoover, Ala.)
OF Diamond Leslie, Marshall (Fr., OF – Alpharetta, Ga.)
OF Brooklin Lippert, ULM (So., OF – Loganville, Ga.)
OF Taylor McKinney, Troy (Sr., OF – Montgomery, Ala.)
DP Payton List, James Madison (R-So., DP – Beaver, Pa.)
All-Sun Belt Second Team
P Alana Barnard, Georgia Southern (Jr., RHP – Statesboro, Ga.)
P Alyssa Faircloth, Troy (So., LHP – Northport, Ala.)
P Sophie Moshos, App State (Jr., LHP – Brazil, Ind.)
C Maddy Jennings, Coastal Carolina (Sr., C – Belton, S.C.)
1B Georgia Hood, Coastal Carolina (Jr., 1B – Mount Gambier, Australia)
1B Emily Smith, Louisiana (Fr., 1B – Kountze, Texas)
1B Gabby Stagner, South Alabama (Sr., 1B – Mobile, Ala.)
2B Keirstin Roose, Coastal Carolina (Sr., 2B – Wolcottville, Ind.)
3B Sam Roe, Louisiana (Sr., 3B – Destin, Fla.)
SS Haleigh Adkins, Marshall (So., SS – Hamlin, W.Va.)
SS Delanie Thames, Georgia Southern (So., SS – Statesboro, Ga.)
OF Kayla Falterman, Louisiana (Sr., OF – The Woodlands, Texas)
OF Maddie Hayden, Louisiana (Sr., OF – West Monroe, La.)
OF McKinnon Howard, Troy (So., OF – Smiths Station, Ala.)
DP Layla Thompson, ULM (Sr., DP – Gonzales, La.)
"We are excited that these three players have been selected as Sun Belt All-Conference recipients," head coach Eric Newell said. "All-conference recognition is always special because your opponent's vote on it. This trio was definitely worthy, and we are very proud that they represent Troy softball."
McKinney led the Trojans all season in nearly every category, including slugging percentage (.768), runs (54), hits (63), RBIs (53), doubles (12) – tied with Makaley Boswell –, triples (3), homers (15), total bases (126), walks (30), sac flies (4) and on-base percentage (.485). Her 54 runs currently tie her for the most in a Troy single season while ranking 39th in the country. The Montgomery, Ala. native earned her third straight All-Sun Belt Team recognition after breaking the program record for the longest reached-base streak of 39 – she reached base safely in all 24 league games. The senior outfielder was a five-tool player, going 8-for-8 in stolen bases and fielding a 97.7 percentage.
Faircloth dominated the circle throughout 2025 with 15 victories to rank 66th in the country while punching out 146 batters to sit 42nd nationally – her 6.9 strikeouts per seven innings ranked 84th in D-I softball. The sophomore led the Sun Belt Conference with 5.04 hits allowed per seven innings and four shutout appearances, becoming the first pitcher in Troy history since Leanna Johnson with multiple shutouts through conference play in a single season.
Howard rounded out the trio of Trojans after leading the program with 14 stolen bases, which ranked ninth in the league. In her 53 games, she had 106 at-bats and 47 hits to hit a .443 clip break the single-season record by a Trojan. Against top-tier competition, Howard stayed consistent, having a .438 batting average on 14 hits, a .438 slugging percentage and a .471 on-base percentage for a .909 OPS. The sophomore outfielder also hammered multiple hits in 12 games, with three coming against Louisiana in the program's first-ever series win.
The trio of All-Sun Belt honorees look to Wednesday, May 7, at 7 p.m., where they face James Madison in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament at the Troy Softball Complex.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Softball Postseason Awards
Player of the Year: Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Jr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
Pitcher of the Year: Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina (Sr., LHP – Bethpage, N.Y.)
Newcomer of the Year: Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Jr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
Freshman of the Year: Emily Smith, Louisiana (Fr., 1B – Kountze, Texas)
Coach of the Year: Molly Fichtner, ULM
All-Sun Belt First Team
P Madison Azua, Texas State (So., LHP – Round Rock, Texas)
P Maddie Johnson, Georgia Southern (Fr., RHP – Athens, Ga.)
P Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina (Sr., LHP – Bethpage, N.Y.)
C Megan Kelnar, Texas State (Jr., C – Kyle, Texas)
1B Aiyana Coleman, Texas State (Jr., 1B – College Station, Texas)
2B Morgan Brown, ULM (R-Fr., 2B – Katy, Texas)
2B Makayla McClain, App State (Jr., 2B – Liberty, N.C.)
3B Olivia Branstetter, South Alabama (So., 3B – Liberty, Mo.)
SS Grace Barrett, App State (So., SS – Milton, Ga.)
OF Meagan Brown, ULM (So., OF – Katy, Texas)
OF Hannah Christian, Southern Miss (Fr., OF – Hoover, Ala.)
OF Diamond Leslie, Marshall (Fr., OF – Alpharetta, Ga.)
OF Brooklin Lippert, ULM (So., OF – Loganville, Ga.)
OF Taylor McKinney, Troy (Sr., OF – Montgomery, Ala.)
DP Payton List, James Madison (R-So., DP – Beaver, Pa.)
All-Sun Belt Second Team
P Alana Barnard, Georgia Southern (Jr., RHP – Statesboro, Ga.)
P Alyssa Faircloth, Troy (So., LHP – Northport, Ala.)
P Sophie Moshos, App State (Jr., LHP – Brazil, Ind.)
C Maddy Jennings, Coastal Carolina (Sr., C – Belton, S.C.)
1B Georgia Hood, Coastal Carolina (Jr., 1B – Mount Gambier, Australia)
1B Emily Smith, Louisiana (Fr., 1B – Kountze, Texas)
1B Gabby Stagner, South Alabama (Sr., 1B – Mobile, Ala.)
2B Keirstin Roose, Coastal Carolina (Sr., 2B – Wolcottville, Ind.)
3B Sam Roe, Louisiana (Sr., 3B – Destin, Fla.)
SS Haleigh Adkins, Marshall (So., SS – Hamlin, W.Va.)
SS Delanie Thames, Georgia Southern (So., SS – Statesboro, Ga.)
OF Kayla Falterman, Louisiana (Sr., OF – The Woodlands, Texas)
OF Maddie Hayden, Louisiana (Sr., OF – West Monroe, La.)
OF McKinnon Howard, Troy (So., OF – Smiths Station, Ala.)
DP Layla Thompson, ULM (Sr., DP – Gonzales, La.)
Players Mentioned
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