College Station, TX — Marist softball made history throughout its 2025 campaign and added to an illustrious resume by being named a No. 3 seed in the Bryan-College Station Regional held at Texas A&M. Marist represents the MAAC as the conference’s first-ever No. 3 seed in an NCAA softball regional tournament.
While riding a 17-game winning streak and fresh off the program’s fifth MAAC championship, the Red Foxes face stiff competition beginning Friday, May 16, in a four-team double-elimination tournament. This preview details each team’s path to the tournament and what to expect in Aggieland.
No. 1 Texas A&M (45-9, 16-7 SEC)
Friday, May 16, versus Saint Francis at 3:30 p.m. EST
For the first time in the program’s history, the Aggies are the top overall seed in the NCAA softball tournament. Texas A&M is nearly a consensus top team with the top RPI ranking and the No. 1 spot in every Top-25 ranking except Softball America’s, in which they rank second.
Texas A&M split the SEC Championship with Oklahoma after the conference championship matchup was canceled due to weather. The SEC features stout competition, evidenced by an NCAA record 14 teams making the tournament and owning seven of the eight top national seeds.
The Aggies limit runs, allowing seven or more runs in only nine games and holding a third-best ERA in the SEC at 2.72. Senior pitcher and All-SEC First Teamer Emiley Kennedy headlines the staff with a 2.68 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and .193 BAA. All six Aggies pitchers have made at least one start and nine appearances, and each owns an ERA of 3.33 or less.
Offensively, sophomore first baseman Mya Perez is arguably the SEC’s top hitter. Along with Kennedy, Perez is the other Aggie to earn an All-SEC First Team bid following a .447/.578/.830 season with a 1.408 OPS, 14 home runs and 68 RBI. Two other Aggies, graduate student transfer from San Diego State and Ole Miss, Mac Barbara and freshman KK Dement, hit over 10 home runs, drove in more than 50 RBI and have an OPS over 1.000.
In the last three games, the Aggies’ offense exploded with 13-2, 12-4 and 14-2 victories over Tennessee, South Carolina and Texas, leading to the SEC Championship before its cancelation. The Aggies look to protect home turf and advance to their second straight Super Regional.
No. 2 Liberty Flames (47-12, 23-3 CUSA)
Friday, May 16, versus Marist at 1:00 p.m. EST
Liberty danced in and out of the Top 25 all season, but consistently remained one of the top three mid-majors in the nation. The Flames finished with the 31st-best RPI ranking and the third-most wins in the nation, tied with Oregon and Marist at 47.
Liberty was against the ropes during its conference tournament, dropping a semi-final game against Jacksonville State and surviving a 10th-inning 2-1 walk-off victory against Louisiana Tech to return to the championship. The Flames came back to form with an 8-0 run-rule beatdown against Jacksonville State to win the program’s second straight conference championship.
The Flames do a bit of everything as an offense. Senior outfielder Rachel Roupe is the only player with over 10 home runs, but she is way over that threshold with 20. As a team, they walk and steal a lot of bases with 112, the 13th-most stolen bases in the country. That number is in large part due to senior outfielder KK Madrey stealing 48 stolen bases, the third-most in the country.
Madrey is also the team AVG leader at .406, followed by Roupe’s .382 and sophomore outfielder Paige Doerr’s .360, while also stealing 15 bases, the second-most on the team. Outside of Roupe’s insane .844 SLG, the slug numbers are not incredibly high, but the Flames use speed to more than make up for it.
In the circle, the Conference USA champs mainly use three pitchers, senior Elena Escobar, sophomore Kaylan Yoder and senior Paige Bachman as a part of their 2.22 staff ERA. Escobar threw a team-leading 145.1 innings, owns a 22-3 record with a 1.83 ERA and 1.00 WHIP and struck out 160 batters. Liberty will use a combination of strong pitching and taking extra bases to wreak havoc against opponents.
No. 3 Marist Red Foxes (47-7-1, 21-2-1 MAAC)
Friday, May 16, versus Liberty at 1:00 p.m. EST
Marist is coming full circle after beginning their season in Texas and now returning for the biggest games of the season. The Red Foxes enter the tournament with the fourth-highest winning percentage in the country, the 12th-best scoring offense and a top-10 team WHIP and ERA in the nation. The Red Foxes are coming off a much-needed 10-2 MAAC championship win after their bats went cold in the previous two games of the tournament, squeaking out 2-1 and 1-0 wins over Siena and Rider.
While the bats eventually woke up, the MAAC tournament showcased the Red Foxes’ pitching staff, headed by graduate student pitcher Kiley Myers and senior pitcher Maddie Pleasants. Myers pitched 140 innings to a 1.50 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, .207 BAA and 110 strikeouts to 17 walks. While Myers is 22-1, Pleasants is an excellent option as well, with a 2.20 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, a .194 BAA and 188 strikeouts over 127 innings.
The 12th-best scoring offense holds six players with an OPS above .900, three with at least 50 RBI and two with over 20 home runs. Graduate student shortstop Miah McDonald leads the team with 24 home runs and a 1.520 OPS, and Pleasants smacked 22 homers while driving in 70 RBI, along with her stellar pitching.
Junior center fielder Peyton Pusey led the nation in runs scored, and redshirt junior first and second baseman Haley Ahr led the nation in AVG. Those two round out the top of the lineup with McDonald and Pleasants, but each Red Fox must continue with their steady contributions. The pitching, meanwhile, can capitalize on their conference tournament success and bring it into this regional tournament.
No. 4 Saint Francis Flash (26-14, 14-7 NEC)
Friday, May 16, versus Texas A&M at 3:30 p.m. EST
The Red Flash are playing their best softball at the right time, winning eight in a row and 11 of their last 12 games. During this hot streak, Saint Francis stole the NEC bid from top-seeded LIU by beating them in the NEC Championship after being swept by the Sharks in the regular season.
During its final season at the Division I level, junior outfielder Savannah Nash is carrying the load for Saint Francis and has earned herself NEC Player of the Year honors. The Red Flash utilizes a balanced lineup with six players driving home an average of 31 RBIs. Nash hit .423/.481/.750 over 50 games with an OPS of 1.231 and a team-high 13 home runs and 38 RBI.
Outside of Nash, two others, senior infielder Oliva Ulam and sophomore utility Hannah Bendle, maintain an AVG of over .300 and an OPS above .900. Along with Ulam’s offensive abilities, she was awarded the NEC Golden Glove with only three errors in 387 chances at first base.
Ulam will typically play defense behind sophomore pitcher Allie Brady, the only pitcher with over 100 innings, five complete games and an ERA lower than 4.00. Brady finished the 27 appearances with a 15-11 record, a 2.41 ERA, 16 complete games and 67 strikeouts in 142 innings. Brady will need to stay in the circle, and the lineup will need to continue their balanced scoring for Saint Francis.
Full Regional Tournament Schedule (via ESPN)
Friday
Game 1: Saint Francis (PA) vs. No. 1 Texas A&M, 3:30 p.m., SEC Network
Game 2: Marist vs. Liberty, 1 p.m., ESPN+
Saturday
Game 3: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2
Game 4: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
Game 5: Winner Game 4 vs. Loser Game 3
Sunday
Game 6: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5
Game 7 (if necessary): Rematch Game 6
Edited by Marley Pope
Graphic by Quinn DiFiore; Photos from Marist Athletics
For more coverage of Marist athletics, follow @cfmarist on Instagram, X, TikTok, and Bluesky. Sign up to receive daily alerts here.
