Air Force's Walker Zapp Named 2026 Preseason All-Mountain West Catcher
2/4/2026 1:01:00 PM | Baseball
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – With the baseball season fast approaching, Air Force team captain Walker Zapp represents the Falcons on the Mountain West 2026 Preseason All-Conference Team, as announced by conference officials Wednesday afternoon. The honor marks the first preseason all-conference recognition of the senior's career.
"Cadet Zapp is our captain, our leader, and our field general behind the plate," said head coach Mike Kazlausky. "As our catcher, he sets the tone for our team every day. Congratulations to him on his preseason honor, it is well deserved, but more importantly he is an even better person than he is a baseball player."
Zapp was a cornerstone of the Falcons' offense in 2025, leading the team at the plate for much of the season. The Auburn, Ala., native posted a .330 batting average with 65 hits, including 18 doubles, five triples and seven home runs. He drove in 43 runs and added eight stolen bases. Against Mountain West competition, Zapp totaled 37 hits and 26 RBIs.
Defensively, Zapp was just as impactful behind the plate, recording a .970 fielding percentage and starting all 51 games he played. He threw out 11 would-be base stealers, tallied 35 assists and anchored the Falcons' defense throughout the season.
Kazlausky expressed, "We have bigger plans for Cadet Zapp. He will take the lessons he learned on the friendly fields of strife and use them to propel himself towards not only becoming an elite Air Force pilot, but an exceptional Air Force officer and leader of character."
2026 MOUNTAIN WEST BASEBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Name Class Position Institution
Walker Zapp Sr. C Air Force
Griffen Sotomayor Sr. INF Fresno State
Alessandro Castro Jr. P Nevada
Jayce Dobie Sr. UTL Nevada
Jake Harvey Sr. C Nevada
Junhyuk Kwon Sr. INF Nevada
Sean Yamaguchi So. INF Nevada
Khalil Walker Sr. OF New Mexico
Tyler Albanese Jr. P San Jose State
Kyle Calzadiaz Sr. P San Jose State
Alex Fernandes Sr. OF San Jose State
Carson Lane Jr. P UNLV
Max Hartman Sr. OF Washington State
To read the full release and Mountain West predicted order of finish, click here.
"Cadet Zapp is our captain, our leader, and our field general behind the plate," said head coach Mike Kazlausky. "As our catcher, he sets the tone for our team every day. Congratulations to him on his preseason honor, it is well deserved, but more importantly he is an even better person than he is a baseball player."
Zapp was a cornerstone of the Falcons' offense in 2025, leading the team at the plate for much of the season. The Auburn, Ala., native posted a .330 batting average with 65 hits, including 18 doubles, five triples and seven home runs. He drove in 43 runs and added eight stolen bases. Against Mountain West competition, Zapp totaled 37 hits and 26 RBIs.
Defensively, Zapp was just as impactful behind the plate, recording a .970 fielding percentage and starting all 51 games he played. He threw out 11 would-be base stealers, tallied 35 assists and anchored the Falcons' defense throughout the season.
Kazlausky expressed, "We have bigger plans for Cadet Zapp. He will take the lessons he learned on the friendly fields of strife and use them to propel himself towards not only becoming an elite Air Force pilot, but an exceptional Air Force officer and leader of character."
2026 MOUNTAIN WEST BASEBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Name Class Position Institution
Walker Zapp Sr. C Air Force
Griffen Sotomayor Sr. INF Fresno State
Alessandro Castro Jr. P Nevada
Jayce Dobie Sr. UTL Nevada
Jake Harvey Sr. C Nevada
Junhyuk Kwon Sr. INF Nevada
Sean Yamaguchi So. INF Nevada
Khalil Walker Sr. OF New Mexico
Tyler Albanese Jr. P San Jose State
Kyle Calzadiaz Sr. P San Jose State
Alex Fernandes Sr. OF San Jose State
Carson Lane Jr. P UNLV
Max Hartman Sr. OF Washington State
To read the full release and Mountain West predicted order of finish, click here.
Players Mentioned
C
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