STOCKTON, Calif. – On Monday afternoon, Head Coach Sam Duran-Kukuk and the Pacific softball team announced the signing of five student-athletes set to join the team in the summer of 2026.

"We are thrilled about the 2026 signing class. These athletes are incredibly talented and dedicated to performing at the highest level. They excel in the classroom and play with extreme passion. Each one of them will be instrumental in shaping the future of this program. I couldn't be prouder to welcome them as Pacific Tigers," Duran-Kukuk said.

Coming to Stockton from West Valley City, Utah is infielder Kenya Lapuaho. She currently competes for Hunter High School where she is her region's reigning MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, and First Team All-Region selection – accolades she parlayed into a Second Team All-State Honor. For her career, she has an additional Offensive Player of the Year (2024) and two more First Team All-Region (2023 and 2024) selections.

Lapuaho also bring with her experience representing her country as she has twice played for Team USA U15 Team in 2023, winning the Utsugi Cup and a gold medal at the World Cup. She has also represented Team Polynesia in 2024 and 2025, taking the International Challenge Championship in 2024.

Inside the classroom, she stands out as a two-time Academic All-Region Selection (2024 and 2025), a two-time High Honor Roll (2023/24 and 2024/25) inclusion and Honor Roll (2023/24) inclusion. She's also involved in her high school's student government. Lapuaho plans to major in Sport Management.

Olivia Fears will join Pacific as an outfielder after graduating from Linden High School in Linden, California. While there she has garnered three First Team All-League honors and an Offensive Player of the Year award. A multi-sport athlete, she played a year of volleyball, two years of golf and a season of basketball her freshman year where she won Defensive Player of the Year.

Like Lapuaho, Fears is a standout student – earning High Academic Honors her previous three years and comes to Pacific with plans to major in chemistry with the aspirations of entering a career in the pharmaceutical sciences.

Mia Bennette is another in-state product, hailing from San Jose, California where she's in her senior season at The King's Academy. A highly accomplished infielder, Bennette has her high school's record for hits, triples, and home runs in a single season as well as the record for the longest hitting streak in school history. Resulting from her in-game accomplishments, Bennette was recognized with a First Team All-State award in 2025, three First Team All-Leagues, 2025 NCSAA All-Far West Super Regional Team, 2025 NCSAA All-American and Regional First Team, as well as ranked in the top 54 Bay Area Players by West Coast Preps.

Outside of softball, Bennette has been involved in her school's flag football team as the starting quarterback where she was the 2024 West Bay Athletic League Offensive Player of the Year and member of the 2024 First Team All-League team. In the classroom she plans to pursue a business degree.

The second out of state prospect in the class, infielder Lauren Fulton joins the Tigers from Queen Creek, Arizona where she attends Casteel High School. Known as a prolific defender, Fulton has a gold glove to her name. She is undecided on what she plans to do academically yet.

Returning to the Bay Area, Chloe Garcia will join the program following her senior year at Milpitas High School in Milpitas, California. An infielder, Garcia has blossomed into a standout on the diamond – earning First Team All-League honors last season after getting Second Team the season prior and Honorable Mention the year before.

While at Pacific, Cabrera plans to major in Health and Exercise Science.

All five future Tigers will report to the team over the summer following their graduations.

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