LOUISVILLE – South Alabama first baseman
Virginia Mambelli was named second-team all-Gulf Region by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association on Wednesday by the organization.
The selection marks the 26th overall all-region selection for the program and the first for a Jaguar since
Olivia Lackie earned second-team honors in 2024.
The awards honor softball student-athletes from the Association's 10 regions with first, second and third-team selections. NFCA member head coaches from each respective region nominated student-athletes and voted for the teams. All awarded student-athletes now become eligible for the 2026 NFCA Division I All-America squads.
The 2026 NFCA Division I All-America teams, voted on by the NFCA DI All-American Committee, will be announced prior to the start of the Women's College World Series later this month.
In her first season as a Jag, Mambelli started 46 of the 55 games in which she competed, with most of those starts coming at first. The Forli, Italy, native currently ranks second on the club with a .319 batting average and leads the club with a .588 slugging percentage. Of her 38 hits, 16 have gone for extra-bases, including seven home runs, which are tied with
Olivia Branstetter for most on the Jaguar roster.
Mambelli has also been hit by a pitch a team-high 15 times, which already rank in the Top 10 at South for a career and fourth-most for a season, just one shy of equaling Kaitlyn Griffith (16) for third.
In her 28 games against Top-75 RBI teams, Mambelli was even better, raising her batting average to a team-best .350. The junior infielder posted five doubles, four home runs and drove in 12 against those teams, while posting an impressive .633 slugging percentage.
Mambelli, who joined the Jaguars this season after transferring from Florida Southwestern Junior College where she was named NJCAA Third-Team All-America in 2025, and was a two-time FCSAA All-State and First-Team All-Citrus Conference honors.
South Alabama will open up play at the Baton Rouge Regional on Friday when it takes on Virginia Tech at 3 p.m. in Baton Rouge, La., at Tiger Park.
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