For Texas A&M softball, last season ended in heartbreaking fashion in the Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament at the hands of its greatest rival, Texas. This season, a mix of fresh and familiar faces look to do what the 2024 squad could not: make the Women’s College World Series.
In what was almost an upset for the ages, No. 16 A&M fell one run shy of downing No. 1 Texas in the Austin Super Regional. The Longhorns eventually made it to the finals before ultimately falling to Oklahoma.
The Aggies’ 2024 squad was loaded with talent that will be sorely missed in 2025. With catcher Julia Cottrill, second base Rylen Wiggins, first base Trinity Cannon, pitcher Shaylee Ackerman, infielder Sav Price and center fielder Jazmine Hill no longer with the program, A&M coach Trisha Ford will look to the remaining familiar, and the new fresh faces, to get the job done this season.
Familiar faces to watch
Senior P Emiley Kennedy finished the 2024 season with a 24-11 record and a 1.93 ERA. She also registered the third-most shutouts and complete games in the nation. Last season, she was named a D1 Softball First Team All-American, an NFCA Second Team All-American, a Softball America Second Team All-American, an All-SEC First Team and a USA Softball Player of the Year Top 26 Finalist.
She has already begun her 2025 resume off strong, receiving Preseason First Team All-American and Preseason Top 100 Player nods from both Softball America and D1 Softball. The lefty was also named to USA Softball’s Top 53 Player of the Year Watch List.
Another familiar face returning for the Aggies is senior infielder Koko Wooley. The La Porte native is a two-time All-SEC Second Team member, as well as being named to the 2024 SEC All-Tournament Team and the 2024 NFCA All-South Region First Team. Wooley led the team in batting average, hitting .382 on the season. She also led in hits, stolen bases and multi-hit games.
Wooley joins Kennedy with 2025 USA Softball Top 53 Player of the Year Watch List and Softball America and D1 Softball Preseason Top 100 Player honors.
The Aggies also return senior outfielder Allie Enright, who hit .308 for the squad. She knocked 10 home runs and 41 RBIs last season.
Fresh faces join the fray
The Maroon and White have added some serious firepower through the transfer portal: graduate INF Mac Barbara from San Diego State, senior C Olivia “Ojo” Johnson and sophomore P Sidne Peters from Washington, junior P Grace Sparks from Ole Miss and sophomore INF Ariel Kowalewski from Florida.
Barbara joins the Aggies with a .368 career batting average and 45 home runs. She was named Mountain West Player of the Year in both 2022 and 2024. The California native rounds out the Aggies’ trio of players receiving 2025 USA Softball Top 53 Player of the Year Watch List, Softball America and D1 Softball Preseason Top 100 Player nods.
Johnson, a Dawson High School alum, returns back to the Lone Star State after accumulating a .257 career batting average, 483 slugging percentage, 19 home runs and 65 RBIs.
Joining Johnson, Peters left Washington for A&M after posting an 8-1 record with a 3.35 ERA and 70 strikeouts in her freshman season. The Santa Fe native earned Pac-12 All-Freshman Team honors.
Sparks came to Aggieland after boasting a 13-6 record with a 2.49 ERA and 88 strikeouts. She led the Rebels in ERA and shutouts last season.
The Aggies added Kowalewski late in December. The Travis High School alum returns to Texas after batting .308, recording 45 hits and eight home runs for the Gators last season.
On top of the phenomenal transfer class, the Aggies inked 10 freshmen to the squad in a recruiting class that ranked No. 12 nationally.
Notably, freshman INF KK Dement was named to Softball America’s Freshman Watchlist. The Selma, California native finished her high school career with a .565 batting average and 10 home runs.
The road ahead
Heading into the season, the Aggies have been ranked No. 7 in the Softball America and the ESPN/USA Softball Preseason Polls. In the NFCA Preseason Poll, A&M was No. 8. Across all three polls, the Aggies find themselves playing 11 of the teams in the top-25 this season.
The Fightin’ Farmers’ success this season depends on their ability to fill offensive holes left by explosive hitters like Cannon and Cottrill and how many games they can steal from ranked opponents. With their influx of transfer portal and freshman talent, expect for the Aggies to be playing into late May, and even early June.
