AZUSA, Calif. — The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Acrobatics and Tumbling team swept the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association Division III major awards for the fifth consecutive season, with Natalie Podsednik, Jenna Hall and Claire Willis all taking home major awards. Coach Raffaela Scotto was also named NCATA Division III Coach of the Year. UMHB also named two athletes to the All-America team and 18 to the Academic Honor Roll.
Natalie Podsednik was named NCATA Division III Most Outstanding Athlete of the Year and NCATA Second Team All-American. Podsednik, a senior base from Fort Worth, competed in 12 heats plus team event this season. She competed in Compulsory Acro, Compulsory Pyramid, and Compulsory Toss, helping UMHB average an 8.91 in Acro, 9.52 in Pyramid, and 9.70 in Toss. She also competed in Seven Element Acro, splitting time between Five Element Acro and Six Element Acro. Five Element averaged a score of 9.53, Six Element averaged a 9.13, while Seven Element scored a 9.55 or higher in every meet, averaging a score of 9.76. Podsednik competed in all three Pyramid events, with each event averaging a score of 9.59 or higher on the season. She was a key part of the Open Pyramid that averaged a score of 9.87, earning a perfect 10.000 twice in both meets against ETBU. Podsednik also competed in each Toss event, splitting time between Open Toss and 450 Salto Toss, participating in Synchronized Toss in all meets. She assisted the Cru in earning average scores of 9.61 in 450 Salto, 8.93 in Synchronized, and 9.69 in Open. Podsednik also earned her third NCATA Academic Honor Roll recognition and was previously named NCATA Division III Specialist of the Year in 2025.
Jenna Hall was named NCATA Division III Specialist of the Year and NCATA Second Team All-American. Hall, a senior top and tumbler from Houston, competed in 16 heats along with Team Event this season. She competed in all heats of the Compulsory event, helping her team to an average score of 8.91 in Acro, 9.51 in Pyramid, 9.70 in Toss, along with a 7.73 in Tumbling. She participated in all three Pyramid events, earning her the Specialist of the Year honor. She assisted the Cru in accumulating averages of 9.59 in Inversion, 9.64 in Synchronized, and 9.87 in Open. Hall was a top in all three Toss Event heats during the season, splitting time between Open and 450 Salto. She also competed in three Tumbling events. Hall competed in Quad Tumbling for the first four meets of the season, averaging a score of 7.575. For the final four meets, she competed in Duo, accumulating an average score of 8.275. Hall competed in Six Element for all eight meets, finishing with an average of 9.300. Hall was also named to the NCATA Academic Honor Roll for the fourth time in her career. This marks Hall's second All-American honor, along with her second major award after earning NCATA DIII Freshman of the Year in 2023.
Claire Willis was named NCATA Division III Freshman of the Year, along with being named to the NCATA Academic Honor Roll. Willis, a base and tumbler from Waco, competed in four heats plus Team Event this season. She participated in Compulsory Pyramid and Compulsory Tumbling, helping the Cru to averages of 9.51 and 7.73 respectively. She was also a part of Synchronized Pyramid, finishing the season with a 9.64 average. Willis competed in the Quad Tumbling event, helping her team to an average score of 7.375, highlighted by two 7.700s. She earned four NCATA Freshman of the Week honors this year.
Head Coach Raffaela Scotto was named NCATA Division III Coach of the Year. Scotto is in her fourth season of coaching at UMHB, finishing the 2026 season with a record of 7-3, earning an overall record of 33-10 in her career. She has led her team to four NCATA DIII Tournament Championships with four NCATA National Championship appearances. Scotto was also named NCATA Coach of the Year in 2024.
Ryanne Beall, Abby Coyle, Genna Crafts, Claire Cupples, Malia Erickson, Makaelyn Frei, Riley Gray, Valeria Guevara, Savannah Hall, Kasey Hedrick, Emily Kithil, Alexis Kokel, Madi Lybarger, Madi Malesic, and Hannah Ross were also named to the NCATA Academic Honor Roll.
The Cru earned two at-large bids to the NCATA National Championship Event Finals, competing in Seven Element Acro along with Synchronized Toss on Sunday.
