LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Senior shortstop Olivia Tautges of the College of Saint Benedict softball team (10-8, 0-0 MIAC) is among the 118 student-athletes from across the nation named to the 2026 NFCA Division III Pitcher and Player of the Year Watchlist on Thursday afternoon.

The list is separated into the 10 NCAA regions and is compiled by the elected members of the NFCA Division III All-America Committee with one head coach representing each of the 10 NCAA regions. Tautges is one of 10 players from Region IX named to the list.  

Tautges (Brainerd, Minn.) has been one of the most productive hitters in Division III and a two-time MIAC Player of the Week this season (five career honors). A third team NFCA All-American two years ago, she is batting .491 — first in the MIAC — and leads the conference in OPS (1.610), on-base percentage (.592) and runs scored (24). Her 1.018 slugging percentage ranks 11th in Division III and second in the MIAC.

Tautges is also second in the MIAC in RBI (19) and hits (28), while her eight home runs are tied for first in the conference and rank third nationally. In 112 career games, Tautges has 27 home runs (second in program history), 95 RBI (sixth), a .739 slugging percentage (first all-time at CSB) and a .462 on-base percentage (fifth all-time at CSB).

Voted on by the NFCA's Division III All-America Committee, the 2026 NFCA Player and NFCA/Portolite Pitcher of the Year winners will be announced on May 27 prior to the start of the NCAA Division III World Series.

Student-athletes do not have to be on this watchlist to be considered for end-of-season awards, which will be voted on by the members of the NFCA Division III All-America Committee. To be eligible to be selected for NFCA Player and NFCA/Portolite Pitcher of the Year honors, a student-athlete's head coach must be a member.

The NFCA Player of the Year award was created in 2016 to honor outstanding softball achievement in NCAA Division III. In 2019, the Association expanded the award to include separate Player and Pitcher of the Year honors.