The 2025-2026 sporting year has seen a wide range of success. In the fall, the women’s soccer team finished with a strong record of nine wins, seven losses, and five ties. While their four wins, two losses, and three ties in the Ohio Valley Conference were not as clean, the women’s soccer team made a strong run in the OVC tournament, ultimately falling to No. 1-ranked Tennessee Tech University in penalty kicks (4-3). 

However, a delightfully surprising team to watch this season was the women’s volleyball team, which finished with an excellent 14-4 record in the OVC. The Screaming Eagles rebounded from a tough finish to the 2025 season, where they lost 13 in a row, finishing with a 3-15 record. The team quite literally finished in the opposite position this year, which is certainly something worthy of extreme praise. 

Finally, and perhaps least surprisingly, is the women’s basketball team, which remains a consistently competitive and scrappy team year after year. The team, while from a talent standpoint, is certainly a downgrade from the last two seasons, which featured some all-time talent: Madison Webb, forward/center, Vanessa Shafford, guard, and Meredith Raley, forward. Those players brought the first Division I trophies to the university, as well as national attention. 

The women’s basketball team earned a better record than last season, finishing 14-6 overall. While the team did not win the OVC or the OVC Tournament, they once again featured in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. Additionally, the women’s basketball team played on national television during Tennessee Tech University’s Senior Day  Saturday, Feb. 14, where they achieved victory. The Screaming Eagles accomplished all this, not because of their talent, but because of their hard work, determination, and scrappy play throughout the season. 

In this print edition of The Shield, the athletes and teams that achieved significantly this season will be highlighted with The Shield Sports awards. While there are numerous players and teams worthy of praise, this collection is La crème de la crème. Without further ado, here are the recipients of the first Shield Sports Awards. 

Rising Star of the Year: Carley Wright, freshman right side hitter

This season’s women’s volleyball team featured a duo of freshmen who contributed to the team’s success right out of the gate: Aysa Thomas, freshman setter, and Carley Wright, freshman right side hitter.

Thomas finished second on the team in Digs (a defensive maneuver to prevent an opponent’s attack) with 391, while contributing 43 blocks (sixth best on the team), showing a strong defensive talent.

However, only one can win this award, and Wright was more valuable on both sides of the court. She finished with the fourth-highest points on the team with 295, and scored 256 kills, also the fourth-highest. Defensively, she swatted 71 blocks (third highest of the team) and added 87 blocks (seventh on the team). Moving forward, Wright will be the future of the team.

Head Coach of the Year: Jeffrey Aucoin, women’s volleyball head coach

The women’s volleyball team improved remarkably from the 2025 season’s record. While the team’s play was certainly a major factor, a large portion of the credit must go to Head Coach Jeffrey Aucoin and the rest of the coaching staff. They constructed not only a talented roster but a mentally tough one. They added two instant freshmen who contribute: Thomas and Wright, who will only get better as they develop. We could be seeing one of USI’s more marquee teams becoming the future, with the right coaching staff in place to lead. 

Men’s sporting Athlete of the Year: Nathan Deputy, junior diver

Nathan Deputy, junior diver, has been one of the more transformative athletes in the athletic program. Deputy, an Evansville native, began in 2023 at USI  as a collegiate athlete, where he showcased his brilliance early on, breaking the school’s men’s three-meter diving record Jan. 13, 2024. He set the record at 271.88. 

This season, Deputy added a handful of accolades to his repertoire. First, a placement on the College Sports Communications Academic All-District team in Division I. He also reset the men’s three-meter diving record with a score of 333.05, Jan.31, 2026, against the University of Evansville. Finally, he qualified for the National Collegiate Athletic Association Zones meet with the aforementioned score, which was the first time the school had been represented. It was a year of firsts for Deputy, who has been one of the best hometown talent stories on campus. 

Women’s Sporting Athlete of the Year: Emerson Grafton, senior forward

The women’s soccer team featured a large number of contributors to their success this season. Peyton Murphy, senior forward, scored five goals and Brynn Quick, senior defender, was a staunch defender all season. She was crucial to the Screaming Eagles’ set pieces, being the primary corner kick taker.

However, the one that stands out the most is Emerson Grafton, senior forward. Grafton finished with 10 goals and assists. Grafton also earned seven points in the OVC Women’s Soccer standings. She served as the team’s target forward, providing a dangerous, clinical attacking threat against opposing defenses, which opened up scoring opportunities for Murphy, Eva Boer, redshirt sophomore forward, and Josie Pochocki, sophomore forward.

Sports Legacy Athlete of the Year: Ali Saunders, senior guard

Saunders completed her collegiate career this year, leading the Screaming Eagles to a 14-6 conference record. She earned a place on the 2025-2026 All-OVC First Team, leading the team in scoring with 17.8 points per game (third highest in the conference), shooting a remarkable 40% from the three-point line, and set a USI single-season free-throw shooting percentage of 90.1% this season. Perhaps most incredibly, she was the first women’s basketball player to record 100 or more assists in three straight seasons.

As for records, she ranked 17th in points scored 1,159), fourth in three-pointers made (169), second in assists (416), and eighth in steals (179). Saunders also leaves as an Ohio Valley Conference regular-season and tournament champion (2024) and one of the defining figures of USI’s transition to Division I athletics.

Newcomer of the year: Shannon Blacher, junior guard

In a modern NCAA landscape where many athletes switch teams each year, there are some examples of players who hit the transfer portal and find a home, where they build a legacy.

Saunders of the women’s basketball team is a prime example, transferring in from Valparaiso University as a sophomore. In fact, this award goes to someone on the women’s basketball team: Shannon Blacher, junior guard. Blacher, who transferred in from Northern Illinois University of the Mid-American Conference, immediately showcased her abilities from the game against Franklin College, where she scored 15 points and grabbed a season-high seven steals. This would be a sign of things to come, as Blacher remained a defensive menace, a perfect player for Head Coach Rick Stein’s vaunted and harrowing defensive system. She averaged 2.4 steals per game (second highest in the OVC), held a defensive rating of 81.8 (first in the OVC), and added 2.4 defensive win shares (third in the OVC). 

Scoring Powerhouse of the Year: USI Baseball team

In Chris Martinez’s debut season as head coach of the baseball team, Martinez constructed a team that was not only competitive, with an Ohio Valley Conference record of 15-12, but also one that put a ton of runs on the scoreboard. The Screaming Eagles scored 10+ runs in 12 games last season, only losing one of them. 

team featured six players who batted at above a .300 average, (minimum of 150 at-bats) Cole Kitchens, junior infielder at the time, led the team in home runs (12) and runs batted in, (60) while Khi Holiday, senior outfielder at the time, led the team in total runs, (64) in part due to his blazing speed around the bases. The team led the OVC in batting average (.320) and in hits (305) while finishing fourth place in runs scored (188).

Biggest buzzing narratives going into the 2026-2027 USI athletics season

Several intriguing stories are open to interpretation going into next year. Firstly, there’s the appointment of Mads Kaiser as the head coach of the men’s soccer team. How will recruitment change under his leadership? What kind of brand of soccer will he implement?

Secondly, how will the women’s basketball freshman class of 2026 make an impact next season? This class includes Channah Gannon, freshman forward/center and Lily Graves, freshman guard/forward, who cracked the rotation this season.

Where do Alli Robertson, freshman forward, and Ella Bobe, freshman guard, fit into the rotation?

Finally, how could the USI Athletics brand, image and marketing strategies change under the direction of the newly appointed Director of Marketing and Fan Engagement, Jon Aldridge? Will Archie’s Army’s organizational structure be affected as a result of Aldridge’s appointment? How will the Athletics program’s new tailgate regulations transform fan engagement?