AUSTIN, Texas – The College Sports Communicators (CSC) announced the 2026 Academic All-America softball teams for NCAA Division III with senior Emma Lee earning a spot for the second season.

To be tabbed for the award, student-athletes must have a GPA of 3.50 or higher while demonstrating exceptional achievement on the diamond and in the classroom.

Lee becomes just the third student-athlete in program history to achieve Academic All-American status twice in her career. She joins Alexis Michon '25 and Bree Fuller '15. This is the eighth time a member of Thunder softball has taken home the honor.

The Cottage Grove, Wis. native, was selected as a first team outfielder after putting together an exceptional final season both on and off the field. In the classroom, Lee was an Elementary Education/Special Education Dual Licensure major and finished the year with a 4.0 GPA. She is no stranger to earning recognition for her academic achievement after being recognized by as the as the Elite Scholar-Athlete at the 2026 NCAA Division III Softball Championship. That award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's championships.

On the field, she saved her best season for last, culminating with a first team debut on the NFCA All-America list. Defensively she continued to be one of the best in the country, recording just one error in centerfield for a .987 fielding percentage. Offensively she recorded career highs in RBIs, hits, slugging percentage and home runs. She ended the year with 17 home runs, 11 more than any of her previous seasons, tied for fourth most in the country. She was also in the top 25 nationally with 61 RBIs, a .847 slugging percentage and 122 total bases.

For more information on this year's CSC Academic All-America, including a list of all the honorees, view the official release.