NEWTOWN, Pa. –  The Lebanon Valley College softball team was recognized by the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) on Friday, May 8, as the conference office announced in a release that three of the program's players received major awards and four of its student-athletes were honored on the All-MAC Freedom Softball Team. Sophomore second baseman and pitcher Holly Grube was named the MAC Freedom Player of the Year, while senior shortstop Megan Heard was chosen as the Defensive Player of the Year, and first-year pitcher and outfielder Miley Beachel was voted as a Co-Rookie of the Year. 

Grube, Heard, and Beachel were also recognized for their stellar seasons with spots on the All-MAC Freedom First Team. Grube was honored as a second baseman, and Beachel was listed as a utility player. Additionally, senior catcher Maddy Gronback was selected to the Second Team as a non-pitcher designated player and utility player.  

Grube was named to the All-MAC Freedom Team for the second time in her career, as she was recognized on the First Team and as a Co-Rookie of the Year last spring. This year, the sophomore became the program's fifth all-time and first member of the Dutchmen to be chosen as the Player of the Year since Sam Burns received the award as members of the MAC Commonwealth in 2023. Grube leads the squad with a .480 batting average, a 1.247 OPS, a .747 slugging percentage, a .500 on-base percentage, 72 hits, 19 doubles, six triples, and 42 runs scored. The sophomore is also tied for the team lead in RBIs with 31 while ranking second in stolen bases with 23 and tying for second in home runs with three. In the MAC Freedom, she ranked first in batting average, hits, and doubles. Grube also ranked second in the conference in triples, as well as second in slugging percentage, tied for third in runs scored, and tied for fourth in stolen bases. In the pitching circle, Grube is 6-3 with a 3.95 ERA and 28 strikeouts, while leading the team with two saves. The sophomore has delivered several impactful performances during the campaign, including when she recorded two hits with a homer for her 100th career hit, while striking out three batters in a complete-game pitching effort during the 2-1 victory over Stevens Institute of Technology on April 3. Grube also tallied a career-high four hits, two RBIs, and a run scored while tying a career-high three stolen bases in the 9-5 win at the University of Scranton on April 21. Grube was honored during the season for her production, as she was named the MAC Freedom Player of the Week twice. 

Heard received her third career All-Conference honors, as she was recognized on the First Team as a sophomore and on the Second Team as a junior. The shortstop also collected the inaugural MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Year award this year. This spring, Heard leads the team with 93 assists in the field and was tied for 26th in the nation in assists during the regular season. At the plate, the senior leads the team with 22 walks, 25 stolen bases, and six hit-by-pitches. She also ranks second with 28 runs scored, second with a .490 on-base percentage, third with a .377 batting average, third with 46 hits, fourth with 22 RBIs, fourth with a .908 OPS, and tied for fourth with two triples. In the conference, she ranked tied for first in hit-by-pitches, second in assists, second in assists per game, third in on-base percentage, and tied for fourth in stolen bases. Heard has come through with multiple big games for the Dutchmen throughout the year, including when she tied a season-high three hits and matched a career-high three RBIs while stealing a base, scoring two runs, and registering four assists at shortstop during the 8-3 victory at Alvernia University on March 25. The senior also tallied two hits, two RBIs, a run scored, and five assists in the field during the 4-0 win at King's College on April 16.  

Beachel was selected to the All-MAC Freedom Team for the first time in her career, following an excellent debut season. The first-year also earned LVC's second straight Co-Rookie of the Year award and is the seventh player in program history to be named a Rookie of the Year. So far in her first collegiate season, Beachel ranks tied for second on the team with three triples, third with 25 runs scored, third with 10 doubles, fourth with a .315 batting average, fourth with 41 hits, fourth with a .438 slugging percentage, and fifth with an .817 OPS. In the pitching circle, the first-year leads the Flying Dutchmen with 53 strikeouts, four shutouts, and 11 wins, while ranking second with a 3.09 ERA and tying for second with a save. In the MAC Freedom, she tied for second in shutouts and tied for fifth in wins. Beachel's top efforts of the campaign include when she pitched a complete-game shutout with a strikeout while hitting an RBI single during the 4-0 victory at King's. The first-year also recorded a season-high three hits, two RBIs, and a run scored in the 5-2 win over Lycoming College on March 30. Beachel was recognized during the campaign for her efforts, as she was chosen as the MAC Freedom Pitcher of the Week on March 3.  

Gronback earned her second career All-Conference accolades, as the senior was named to the All-MAC Freedom Second Team last spring. This season, the catcher is tied for the team lead in RBIs with 31 and sacrifice flies with three. She also ranks second with a .442 batting average, second with a 1.082 OPS, second with a .637 slugging percentage, second with 50 hits, second with 16 doubles, and tied for second with three triples. In the MAC Freedom, Gronback ranked tied for second in runners caught stealing with seven, fourth in slugging percentage, and sixth in batting average. Gronback played a key role in multiple wins during the season, including when she tied a career-high three hits, including the 100th hit of her career, while logging a career-high five RBIs and a run scored in the 10-6 eight-inning victory at Messiah University on April 13. The senior also picked up two hits and an RBI in the 8-3 win over Stevens on April 3. Gronback was presented with an award during the year for her contributions, as she was listed as the MAC Freedom Player of the Week on April 28. 

The 2026 All-MAC Freedom Softball Team and major award winners are listed below.
2026 All-MAC Freedom Softball Team
Player of the Year: Holly Grube, Lebanon Valley
Pitcher of the Year: Sydney Grifone, FDU-Florham
Defensive Player of the Year: Megan Heard, Lebanon Valley
Co-Rookie of the Year: Miley Beachel, Lebanon Valley
Co-Rookie of the Year: Tessa Fredericks, Delaware Valley
Co-Staff of the Year: FDU-Florham
Co-Staff of the Year: Misericordia University

FIRST TEAM

Position	Name	Year	School
Pitcher	Gabby Cruz	Sophomore	Misericordia
Pitcher	Sydney Grifone	Senior	FDU-Florham
Pitcher	Morgan Mecham	Senior	Delaware Valley

 

Catcher

Riley Signor

Junior

FDU-Florham

 

First Base	Jada Lambright	Senior	FDU-Florham
Second Base	Holly Grube	Sophomore	Lebanon Valley
Third Base	Isabelle Won	Sophomore	Stevens
Shortstop	Megan Heard	Senior	Lebanon Valley

 

Outfield	Kiersten Tinio	Junior	Misericordia
Outfield	Bridget Doherty	Senior	Misericordia
Outfield	Allison Mitloff	Sophomore	Stevens

 

DP/Utility Non-P

Casey Funesti

Senior

Misericordia

 

Utility

Miley Beachel

First-Year

Lebanon Valley

SECOND TEAM

Position	Name	Year	School
Pitcher	Kyra Fischer	Senior	Stevens
Pitcher	Madison Karns	Junior	Delaware Valley

 

Catcher

Amelia Funston

Senior

Delaware Valley

 

First Base	Madison Donnelly	Senior	Delaware Valley
Second Base	Angelina Bresnen	Senior	Delaware Valley
Third Base	Paige Hromin	Junior	DeSales
Shortstop	Mollie Reece	Senior	FDU-Florham

 

Outfield	Tessa Fredericks	First-Year	Delaware Valley
Outfield	Katie Sharkey	Sophomore	DeSales
Outfield	Emma Quattrochi	Junior	Stevens
Outfield	Breanna Goldspiel	Senior	King's

 

DP/Utility Non-P

Maddy Gronback

Senior

Lebanon Valley

 

Utility

Jessica Hsu

Sophomore

Stevens

HONORABLE MENTION

Position	Name	Year	School
First Base	Carmelita Murphy-Brown	Sophomore	Stevens
Second Base	Mackenzie Fizer	Senior	Misericordia
Third Base	Hailey Wodecki	Sophomore	FDU-Florham
Outfield	Sadie Drozdowksi	First-Year	Arcadia
Designated Player	Kylee Berg	Junior	FDU-Florham
Utility Non-P	Isabela Lipsky	First-Year	Stevens
Designated Player	Molly Veach	First-Year	King's

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