Aztecs Softball: Honoring the 2026 Senior Class

Coach Stacey Nuveman-Deniz and the San Diego State Aztecs honored five Seniors this past Sunday on Senior Day.

The five players honored were Key-annah Pu’a, Angie Yellen, Lala Macario, Ally Dueker, and Jade Ignacio.

Unfortunately for the Aztecs and the seniors, this was the first time in Nuveman-Deniz’s tenure that the Aztecs lost on Senior Day.

San Diego State shot itself in the foot this weekend. A weekend that could have potentially been a sweep of a very talented Boise State team ended in a series loss for the Aztecs. In the first game of the series, Matti Kwarta gave up four runs in the first due to walks. On Senior Day, the Aztecs had multiple errors in the second that led to two Bronco runs. Heading into the seventh, the Aztecs had a 2-1 lead. San Diego State ended up blowing the lead and losing the game 5-2.

With the series loss to the Broncos, the Aztecs would now need to sweep the Fresno State Bulldogs to make the postseason in Reno. Along with a sweep, the Aztecs would need some help. Either Grand Canyon sweeping the Colorado State Rams, or San Jose State winning just one game against the Broncos.

Thank you, Seniors

Starting from the least tenured Aztecs, to the most, let’s give a thank you to these Aztecs For Life and their contributions to the Mesa.

“Truly, all five of them have left their mark on this program… Their growth as women, as humans, that’s what I am most proud of. Take away the softball, the way they have been leaders off the field, all of them great students, great teammates, beloved by their teammates… The softball piece, that’s what you all care about, and people pay attention to, but it’s their impact in the clubhouse. The impact they left there is what is going to carry the legacy more than anything they have done on the field,” Nuveman-Deniz had to say about all her five seniors.

Key-annah Pu’a

Pu’a came into the Aztec program this past year as a transfer from Fresno State University. The Aztecs were Pu’a’s final stop on her long softball career. Before the Aztecs, Pu’a started her career at the University of Hawaii, and then after her sophomore year, transferred to Fresno State up north.

Up to this point before the final weekend, Pu’a has appeared in 30 games and started 15 of them. In 88 innings so far, she has a 3.90 ERA, with a 6-9 win-loss record, and 37 strikeouts. Her only year on the Mesa was a little rocky, but she made her mark helping the Aztecs get multiple crucial wins on the year. Her best starts were against Wisconsin and Notre Dame, where she went 6.1 innings in each game, giving up zero runs on the board.

Coach had this to say about a moment that stands out with Pu’a in her short Aztec career. “Yesterday was a pretty big moment for her. She has struggled in her last couple of outings, and she came out yesterday and locked it down those five innings. That confidence it gave her, in her last outing here, that was her senior day. She has had an up and down season, and for to go out on top like that was pretty cool.”

“I am close to them each individually in very different ways, but all of them care for the program. When we went to UNLV and lost the series, we talked about the team and what we need to get better at, and what we can do to help that happen, what talks do we need to have… as a collective just there care for not just the sport, but the program is outstanding to me,” Pu’a said when talking about her fellow senior teammates.

Angie Yellen

“Angela” Yellen, as Quinn Waiki and her teammates call her, has been an Aztec for three years. Being a transfer from Washington, Yellen opened up on Senior Day about the rough time she had at Washington. She spoke about how she questioned herself in softball, questioning whether she should quit or not. Lucky for both Yellen and the Aztec coaching staff, Nuveman-Deniz and Co. have a tremendous eye for talent.

Yellen, in three years on the Mesa up to this point, has accumulated 118 hits, 62 RBIs, nine home runs, and 64 runs scored. On top of being a quality bat for the Aztecs, she was one of the better defenders in this Aztec program. Yellen this year is having her best offensive output as an Aztec. Hitting .351, with an OPS of .886 and four home runs so far. The best game so far this season is up for debate, but her 2-for-4 game against San Diego with a home run and two RBIs stands out in how big the home run was.

“Someone that her personal life circumstances have been hard, the way she has grown and embraced whatever role… just shows up and puts in the work, crazy work ethic, and is going to be a rockstar in whatever she does. The arc of her career and how she has grown just stands out to me,” Coach Nuveman-Deniz said, explaining what she will remember Yellen for as an Aztec.

“I owe a lot to this university. Being a transfer, coming out my Sophomore year, I didn’t have many stats to my name. They really took a chance on me and believed in me; I couldn’t repay them for that,” Yellen said about what San Diego State has meant to her.

Lala Macario

Lala “MeeMaw” Macario came to the Aztec program the same year the Aztecs got Yellen in the transfer portal. Ever since Macario has come onto the Mesa, she has been the absolute heart and soul of this program. Nobody plays the game of softball with more fun, passion, and heart than Macario.

Macario started her softball career at UCF in Orlando, Florida, for her first two seasons. Since joining the Aztecs, every possible game she was healthy with the Aztecs, she has appeared in. So far this season, Macario is batting .302 with an OPS of .731 and has only driven in eight runs.

Last season, Macario was on track to have her best season ever as a collegiate athlete. Unfortunately, 16 games into the season, Macario tore her ACL. Before the injury, she was batting an eye-boggling .465 with a .976 OPS.

Coach Nuveman-Deniz had this to say about a moment that stuck out with her time on the Mesa. “Her tearing her ACL last year, then coming back and, without hesitation, saying she wanted to come back and finish it out. She had career plans and a job already ready for her, and put it on hold… it speaks to the type of person she is and how much she loves this sport and wants to end her career on her terms.”

Macario had this to say as her most memorable moment as an Aztec. “It would have to be… There is a lot, but one specifically would be Cali Deckers ‘ walk-off last senior day. It was Aztec softball, we strung hits together and got the walk-off.”

“I think it would have to be, not the best moment, but Angie came up to me after I made an error and said; you are the best second basemen in this conference, you got this… It showed a lot about her leadership and her as a person,” Macario stated when asked about the most memorable moment between her senior teammates.

Ally Dueker 

Ally Dueker is one of the two four-year Aztecs participating in her last season on the Mesa. Dueker came in out of Clovis, California, and to start her career, was mainly a defensive replacement and pinch runner.

Over the last couple of seasons, especially this year, Dueker has been a more mainstay in the Aztec lineup. The senior is only batting .172 on the season, but the batting average doesn’t speak to what she brings to the team. Dueker brings a battle-like mindset in the field and in the box. Always making it tough on opposing pitchers.

“For Ally Dueker, her bases-loaded walk last weekend, she has had limited offensive opportunities… passing the bat and being selfless just shows who she is. She didn’t get all the things she wanted out of softball in terms of playing time, she accepted her role, and in that moment showed she didn’t want to be the hero,” Coach said about a moment that stuck out to her from Dueker.

“It has meant the world to me; this coaching staff has forced me to grow into the woman I am today because of them. I am forever grateful for this program; the culture we have just elevates us as humans. We have hard conversations, we create great bonds, and this program builds great women,” Dueker said, explaining what San Diego State and this coaching staff mean to her.

Dueker had this to say about her favorite moment with Ignacio. “Not really a memory, but being able to spend the last four years with Jade, seeing our development and grow up, watching each other face adversity… It’s been amazing being beside her.”

Jade Ignacio

Jade Ignacio is one of two Aztecs to be on the Mesa for all four years of her collegiate career. Before she stepped foot on the Mesa as a student-athlete, Ignacio was already an Aztec for life. Her older sister, Jaylene, played for the Aztecs from 2014 to 2017. During her sister’s time as an Aztec, Jade was the Aztec bat girl.

Ignacio has been amazing on the Mesa for the Aztecs. Appearing and making impacts as a freshman, and now being the best hitter in the San Diego State lineup. In her Aztec career, she is hitting .307 with an OPS of .783, six career home runs, and 60 RBIs.

This year has been her best year as an Aztec, batting .385 with an OPS of .971, with five home runs and 34 runs driven in. The senior from Oceanside, California, will likely earn herself at least All-MW second team, if not first team, for her season.

“It means a lot, I feel like I owe so much back to the community and the program in general. My sister played here; it’s just an honor to come back and play for Nuvey. I just learned so much from this program; it has built me as a person,” Ignacio said about her time on the Mesa.

Ignacio had this to say about her favorite memories with her fellow seniors. “I think all of our moments together have been so fun, the way we have bonded over our last year. Just caring so much for the program.”

Bryant Thursby

Bryant is an Assistant Coach at Heritage High School. He is a big-time SDSU fanatic and a Padres fan.