Belmont University softball player Maya Johnson received a Golden Ticket from the Athletes Unlimited Softball League on April 17 following the Bruins’ doubleheader against Illinois State.
The Golden Ticket is an honor that began in 2025 to recognize and commemorate a player’s selection into the Athletes Unlimited Softball League, which has quickly become one of college softball’s highest accolades.
Johnson was presented with her Golden Ticket by Jessica Mendoza, a two-time Olympic medalist, former All-American, and ESPN broadcast personality. “It is an honor to be asked to present Maya with her Golden Ticket and share in this once-in-a-lifetime emotional moment,” Mendoza said. “I have gotten to know Maya and she is one of the most inspiring softball players I have ever met. I look forward to seeing her continued success in the AUSL.”
Johnson earned All-American honors in 2025 from both the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and D1 Softball after leading Belmont University to a Missouri Valley Conference championship and an NCAA Tournament victory. This season, she continues to rank among national leaders in several statistical categories including strikeouts, strikeout-to-walk ratio, earned run average, WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched), shutouts, and complete games.
A native of Columbia Station, Ohio, Johnson led Belmont to key victories over Mississippi State and Georgia this year as the team received votes for national Top 25 polls. Off the field, Johnson graduated with a bachelor’s degree in nursing last May while managing lupus, an autoimmune condition. She has also served as a spokesperson for the Lupus Foundation of America and was keynote speaker at Nashville’s End Lupus Now walk last fall.
With this recognition from AUSL, Johnson joins other notable Belmont athletes who have gone on to professional careers such as Indiana Pacers guard Ben Sheppard and World Champion baseball player Matt Beaty. Other recipients of this season’s Golden Tickets include NiJaree Canady, Karlyn Pickens, and Reese Atwood.
The next step for these honorees will be participation in the 2026 AUSL College Draft scheduled for Monday, May 4 at 7 p.m. Eastern Time on ESPN2 and through the ESPN app.
