Thanks for that info!

Agree, think Coach has / will apply the DSA "tag" to some players. When Bailey Lindemuth (Texas Tech 3B) was offered, that was an indication (to me) that something might be occurring with splitting of scholarships. Before that got out, the roster was at 25 and it was at 27 for the 2025 season.

With grad transfers ability to transfer at any time, I'm sure Coach Ford might be holding some "slots" (1-3) for certain scenarios.

On the DII pitcher who just jumped into the portal.

Every year thousands of players come out of HS and many do really well their first year in D1 power conferences. Pitchers, fielders and hitters. Check out the All-Freshmen teams every year. Some might take a year or two in SEC play to be really awesome but others do not. Think of KK. She picked up the D1 game really fast. The sips and the sooners have had some awesome Freshmen the past few years. Just about every power conference team has a couple of Freshmen who are really good.

Think of that outstanding UCLA pitcher, the Freshman, who just transferred. Awesome stats. And just the year before she was pitching against HS hitters. Lowly HS hitters.

I think most would agree that DII ball is a higher level than HS ball.

I would take an experienced DII player with great stats over a HS player with great stats any day. Especially if she plays on a team that has done really well and made it to the NCAA tournament year after year.

The West Texas A&M pitcher's stats have gotten better every year. Her SO to BB ratio really improved. Shows a lot of control. Most stats improved every year. I would sign her in a second. Same reasons I would have signed Maya Johnson, the awesome pitcher from Belmont.

A related story I like to think about occasionally concerns North Texas softball. Not exactly a softball powerhouse, right? They play some big teams every year but not a lot. Their pitchers did not face power conference hitters week after week. A few years ago they had a really, really good pitcher. Great stats. She transferred to OU for her last year. Some might have said, oh, her stats will go way down playing Big Time ball at OU, facing Big Time hitters.

Her stats that one year at OU?

126.2 IP, .77 ERA, 22-1 W-L, 12 CG, 18 R, 157 SO, 48 BB, .121 against. She went 4-0 that year in the WCWS. Another sooner championship. Made the All-Tournament team.

Her Name? Hope Trautwein.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hope_Trautwein-Valdespino

I thought the same thing when we offered to Lindemuth - that we have 25 on the roster already so we must have some players with partial scholarships. Have to wonder how many? Heck, until we offered to her I thought we were done for the year at picking up new players now I have to wonder!

Agree but I'm sure that she didn't compete against totally incompetent competition. Know D2 to D1 is a step up but for a player of her abilities, how much of a step up is it? On paper it looks good but in practice is another story.

Emilee is an interesting and intriguing player. Even if she has half as productive, pitching & hitting, think this would give the Staff a "wild card" (her abilities) to play. Imagine Lessentine / Munnerlyn / Sparks pitching through the order 1 time (3 innings), then bringing in Pannell and / or Emilee in to wrap up the game. Day's Emilee doesn't pitch, having that kind of bat on the bench to PH with runners in scoring position would be a nice to know.

She played 2025 as a Junior, so not sure how long we would have her. Even for one year, similar to Mac, would be a "nice to have" not necessarily a "got to have".

frankie00 said:

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I thought the same thing when we offered to Lindemuth - that we have 25 on the roster already so we must have some players with partial scholarships. Have to wonder how many? Heck, until we offered to her I thought we were done for the year at picking up new players now I have to wonder!

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Prior to House settlement in the age of scholarship limits, several Aggie sports used NIL to fund the equivalent of a scholarship.

AD has committed to fully funding the roster spots, which presumably means 25 full scholarships for softball. There are no scholarship limits, just what the AD has budget for. If someone were to donate the equivalent of a scholarship to TMF, we can certainly give an additional scholarship. Since it is a scholarship, it avoids the clearinghouse scrutiny and doesn't count as revenue share.

Now designating a player so you can exceed the roster cap, has to be someone on the team last year or an incoming freshman that had a prior offer. But you also want to designate someone who you know you won't lose to the portal next week or you don't mind losing to the portal next week. Also, if you intent is to milk the loophole for multiple years, you don't want to designate seniors that will only give you a year grace period.

cevans_40 said:

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The idea that these D2 players are trash is just incorrect.

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Has anyone but you called them "trash"?

Without speaking to the specific player, usually there are things that effectively stack rank players and a lot of that is a combination of perceived talent and perceived workmanship.

An example might be pitch speed (notionally talent based) and improvement in accuracy over time (more workmanship.) You can see the difference in baseball between D1, A, AA, and the Show because the pitcher requires more to dominate batters as you move up.

I won't ever say a D2 player can't. But I think there is a step up in workmanship and a need to quickly ascertain if the talent is there to support the work.

I tried pitching for a men's fast pitch and I didn't have the talent nor the coaching to quickly step into the role. But loved the idea. Our primary pitcher was about 53 and he was cagey.

Gap said:

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cevans_40 said:

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The idea that these D2 players are trash is just incorrect.

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Has anyone but you called them "trash"?

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There was a claim that they couldn't produce a productive at bat against SEC pitching. Thats a pretty absurd claim.

cevans_40 said:

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Positivelyag512 said:

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High Level Club ball = 100x better lineups than Div II Lineups, just saying

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This is just absurd

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Not at all absurd, High Level Travel Ball teams in their lineups have a kid going to A&M, OU, Oregon, Cal, Michigan State, UCF, tu, Duke, and Texas State in their starting 9. There are no holes in the lineup, and all are used to hitting ELITE pitching, which is the level at which A&M recruits are. If they had gone after her, they'd have seen a way to get her speed into the low 70s or DH possibly

Positivelyag512 said:

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cevans_40 said:

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Positivelyag512 said:

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High Level Club ball = 100x better lineups than Div II Lineups, just saying

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This is just absurd

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Not at all absurd, High Level Travel Ball teams in their lineups have a kid going to A&M, OU, Oregon, Cal, Michigan State, UCF, tu, Duke, and Texas State in their starting 9. There are no holes in the lineup, and all are used to hitting ELITE pitching, which is the level at which A&M recruits are. If they had gone after her, they'd have seen a way to get her speed into the low 70s or DH possibly

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They are also years behind in physical and skill development. The top D2 programs in the country are not 100x worse than top travel teams. Sorry, they just aren't. Now if you could somehow compare them at equal times in their playing careers, then there is likely a sizable gap.

Gosh, so many really strong opinions on the various levels of play. Straight up HS, club ball, D1, D2, D3, Power Conference, etc.

Every Freshman on the Aggies this year played for a club team. Without checking, probably every player on the team. Probably the same for all 'big schools'. College recruiters are all over the big club tournaments every year, especially the big national tournaments. With good reason, of course, because there is a TON of talent to check out.

Bios of players usually say something like 'played for coach (insert name) at (insert name) HS. Played club ball for coach (insert name) on (insert club name).

Most of the major club teams are, basically, HS all-star teams. Their stars are recruited by and signed by 'big schools'.

But playing club ball has to be expensive. Takes a lot of time. Some parents cannot afford it. Or it is just the time it takes. Some players have to work at a job, on the farm, etc. whilst their teammates from their HS teams are off playing club ball. So, even though a girl might be a really good player she did not get the exposure of the 'club team girls' and end up signing with a small school because it is the only way she can get a scholarship to help pay for college.

But she is good. Really good. Some recruiters always keep an eye out for these 'hidden gems'. These 'overlooked' players.

Do you ever look at the NCAA stats during the year? End of year? A sizable number of the top 25 or so in most if not all categories are often at small schools. Sure, the competition may not be as tough in their 'small conference' but they were good enough to be amongst the tops in the country. Some of these may be players who did not play club ball because their parents could not afford it, they had to work during summers, they wanted to attend a college close to home, etc. etc. etc. so did not get signed by a 'big school' - but they are still really good players. Some are really, really good.

Think back in history. Mostly the major sports because they get all the exposure. Articles about a baseball or football MVP sometimes say, "he was not even drafted" or "only a few small schools recruited him" or "he was a walkon".

And the Aggies only have to look back a very short time. Just a few weeks ago. At a small school named Liberty. A team full of players not signed by 'big schools'.

All of this and more is why I would sign the pitcher from West Texas A&M or Maya Johnson from Belmont in a heartbeat.

She is unproven and came from Pitt , which is a power five school to a mid major huge difference she would've got roughed up

I saw on instagram where infielder Reagan Jones has medically retired. She had a great high school career but just couldn't get healthy enough to contribute.

Just noticed the same another thread. Sorry to hear this for her. Wish her all the very best with her journey.

Really sad for her. I think she played only two innings, late in a game at third to see what she could do. Got hurt sometime shortly after that.

This may partially explain the recent offer to the player from Tech since at that time we had 25 on the roster. Now we have 24 on the roster.

Well we are gonna see what Boyer is made of. Heading to Ole Miss.

I have her on my list of players to watch next Spring. We played Ole Miss in '23 and '24, not sure how many seasons we do not play an SEC team before home and away again. Might see them next year or might be the following year.

Whilst I am glad that Maya Johnson decided to stay at Belmont I would have liked to see how she did in a power conference.

Will be watching just about all of the highly rated transfers next Spring, just out of curiousity! Also, of course, Harley Vestal and Amari !!

frankie00 said:

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I have her on my list of players to watch next Spring. We played Ole Miss in '23 and '24, not sure how many seasons we do not play an SEC team before home and away again. Might see them next year or might be the following year.

Whilst I am glad that Maya Johnson decided to stay at Belmont I would have liked to see how she did in a power conference.

Will be watching just about all of the highly rated transfers next Spring, just out of curiousity! Also, of course, Harley Vestal and Amari !!

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I didn't necessarily mean we would see her 1st hand just that she is going to the best conference in all of the land and the softball community will see how she does against the best in the country.

Understood and note that I did not imply in any way that you meant that (head to head) simply because you did not mention head to head. I DID recall all the recent 'flame wars' (old phrase!) about D2 players moving to D1, D1 small school players moving to power conferences, etc. and how they would do. Gosh, it got really heated !! So, I think many of us are wondering how they do. It is a very small step to wondering how they do against the Aggies.

I also thought again about the highly ranked players who transferred (I have on 'my list') to various teams and how I plan on keeping an eye on them, out of curiousity. I then wondered if we would face that D2 pitcher in particular but other players in general (see below). This is when I wrote the part about us playing Ole Miss.

Note that when I brought up Maya Johnson again I thought whilst writing the sentence - "crap, I hope this does not start another round of heated arguments all over again so soon !!!"

A partial listing of the players on my list below (who I will follow next season). Notice how many moved to SEC schools. And how many are from 'smaller' schools. And we made offers to several of them, more reason to watch how they do. Others to other schools like Tech and Oregon that I will follow for various reasons. I am really curious how they do overall and, since many are now in the SEC, how they do against the Aggies if we play against them whilst they are still there.

P - Cece Cellura, San Diego State, to LSU
P - Peja Goold, Chattanooga, to MS State
P - Maddie Johnson, Georgia Southern, to Georgia
P - Sydney Berzon, LSU, to OU
P - Addisen Fisher, UCLA, to Georgia (#1 national recruit and Gatorade National POY)
P/OF - Kaitlyn Terry, UCLA, to Texas Tech (the other UCLA star)
P/INF - Maddi Rutan, Eastern Kentucky, to Tenn

C - Jasmyn (Jazzy) Burns, Ohio State, to Texas Tech

IF - Keirstin Roose, Coastal Carolina, to Georgia
IF - Addison Amaral, Notre Dame, to Oregon

1B - Makenzie Butt, Boise State, to Tenn
1B - Brooke Wells, Houston, to Alabama
2B - Jena Young, Iowa, to Alabama
SS - Jackie Lis, Southern Illinois, to Texas Tech
SS - Addison Foster, Stetson, to Virginia Tech

CF - Sophia Knight, Boise State, to Tenn

OF - Melina Wilkison, Indiana, to OK State
OF/P - Desirae Spearman, New Mexico State, to Texas Tech

Side note: Was thinking about starting the 2026 Aggie Softball thread when the new roster comes out on the 12man site. If someone else starts it beforehand it's completely cool !!

frankie00 said:

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Understood and note that I did not imply in any way that you meant that (head to head) simply because you did not mention head to head. I DID recall all the recent 'flame wars' (old phrase!) about D2 players moving to D1, D1 small school players moving to power conferences, etc. and how they would do. Gosh, it got really heated !! So, I think many of us are wondering how they do. It is a very small step to wondering how they do against the Aggies.

I also thought again about the highly ranked players who transferred (I have on 'my list') to various teams and how I plan on keeping an eye on them, out of curiousity. I then wondered if we would face that D2 pitcher in particular but other players in general (see below). This is when I wrote the part about us playing Ole Miss.

Note that when I brought up Maya Johnson again I thought whilst writing the sentence - "crap, I hope this does not start another round of heated arguments all over again so soon !!!"

A partial listing of the players on my list below (who I will follow next season). Notice how many moved to SEC schools. And how many are from 'smaller' schools. And we made offers to several of them, more reason to watch how they do. Others to other schools like Tech and Oregon that I will follow for various reasons. I am really curious how they do overall and, since many are now in the SEC, how they do against the Aggies if we play against them whilst they are still there.

P - Cece Cellura, San Diego State, to LSU
P - Peja Goold, Chattanooga, to MS State
P - Maddie Johnson, Georgia Southern, to Georgia
P - Sydney Berzon, LSU, to OU
P - Addisen Fisher, UCLA, to Georgia (#1 national recruit and Gatorade National POY)
P/OF - Kaitlyn Terry, UCLA, to Texas Tech (the other UCLA star)
P/INF - Maddi Rutan, Eastern Kentucky, to Tenn

C - Jasmyn (Jazzy) Burns, Ohio State, to Texas Tech

IF - Keirstin Roose, Coastal Carolina, to Georgia
IF - Addison Amaral, Notre Dame, to Oregon

1B - Makenzie Butt, Boise State, to Tenn
1B - Brooke Wells, Houston, to Alabama
2B - Jena Young, Iowa, to Alabama
SS - Jackie Lis, Southern Illinois, to Texas Tech
SS - Addison Foster, Stetson, to Virginia Tech

CF - Sophia Knight, Boise State, to Tenn

OF - Melina Wilkison, Indiana, to OK State
OF/P - Desirae Spearman, New Mexico State, to Texas Tech

Side note: Was thinking about starting the 2026 Aggie Softball thread when the new roster comes out on the 12man site. If someone else starts it beforehand it's completely cool !!

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Thats a really good list and will certainly keep you busy. I think Fisher will be the biggest impact player on that list but only time will tell.

Yes, keeping up with how they do in the future will certainly be a lot of checking but I enjoy digging through stats and stuff like that so it will be enjoyable !!

I HAVE watched NCAA and SEC stats for top players in many categories over the years so having some specific names to watch for will not be too much more to do.

This is the first year I have used the ON3 and the D1 Softball transfer portal sites. I have no idea if they were available in recent years. Allowed me to easily do extensive research on a lot of highly rated players. In the past I kept an eye on Aggies who transferred out and a few big name players (like Canady) but that's about it.

At the end of next season I 'might' make a post with the names on my list with their stats from 2025 and 2026. IF I remember to do so !!

I just saw on ON3 that Bre Warren has committed to Virginia Tech (from South Carolina). She is a College Station HS grad and was at A&M for three seasons (redshirt her second year). I hope she does great this year at VT!

An @AggieSoftball record-breaker takes the @homerunderbyx stage 🥎

Catch @MyaPerez2023 at #DellDiamond on July 26 for @MLB Home Run Derby X!

🎟️: https://t.co/8yDKrEtbni pic.twitter.com/vIhiT3G4hq

— Round Rock Express (@RRExpress) July 12, 2025

Kennedy pitching for the Bandits right now. Tough inning.

Kennedy has had a rough rookie season. No worse than Sam Landry but clearly adjusting to the next level. Good news is her team is in 1st place

Boozer92 said:

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Kennedy has had a rough rookie season. No worse than Sam Landry but clearly adjusting to the next level. Good news is her team is in 1st place

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Bandits are in second but have secured a spot in the final best of 3 series next weekend vs the Talons, who also have an Aggie (Tori Vidales). Most of the rookies in the league haven't started their pro careers on fire but the level of competition is really amped up with top talent spread across only 4 teams.

My wife and I have made 8 AUSL games including 5 of EK11's appearances (three this weekend). We were really outnumbered in Round Rock as both Aggie and Bandit fans, but the crowds and energy levels have been amazing.

KLB93 said:

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Boozer92 said:

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Kennedy has had a rough rookie season. No worse than Sam Landry but clearly adjusting to the next level. Good news is her team is in 1st place

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Bandits are in second but have secured a spot in the final best of 3 series next weekend vs the Talons, who also have an Aggie (Tori Vidales). Most of the rookies in the league haven't started their pro careers on fire but the level of competition is really amped up with top talent spread across only 4 teams.

My wife and I have made 8 AUSL games including 5 of EK11's appearances (three this weekend). We were really outnumbered in Round Rock as both Aggie and Bandit fans, but the crowds and energy levels have been amazing.

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Saturday night there was so much orange and so many horns flashing, I thought the sips were playing.