After winning the American Conference’s defensive player of the year award, USF infielder Kathy Garcia-Soto leads the Bulls into the conference tournament.
TAMPA, Fla. — South Florida senior infielder Kathy Garcia-Soto takes pride in being a Tampa native. Since she was a young girl, she’s expressed her love for the city on the softball diamond.
Before becoming a star at Jefferson High School, Garcia-Soto had already committed to staying home, playing collegiately at USF.
“I honestly did not have a top-five [or a] top-10,” she said. “This was my first visit. I [verbally committed] in eighth grade.”
Since joining the Bulls, Garcia-Soto has been a record breaker. She won the American Conference’s defensive player of the year award in her freshman and sophomore seasons. Now in her senior year, she’s won the award for a conference-record third time, leading all second basemen in the nation with 148 assists.
“It’s a really cool accomplishment, being able to put USF on a pedestal,” she said.
USF could have been Garcia-Soto’s stepping stone to a larger program. However, she never entered the transfer portal and will finish her collegiate career as a Bull.
“This is something that I couldn’t just leave. You truly never know what you’re getting. On the outside, many things may seem good, and then you get in there, and the inside is not very good. So, it’s been truly a blessing to be here and be here all four years and play,” she said.
This year, Garcia-Soto helped the Bulls win their first American Conference regular-season championship since 2019. This weekend, she aims to deliver a second consecutive tournament championship. Win or lose, she hopes to make her hometown proud.
“I wouldn’t be able to do it without the Tampa Bay community and just being able to be a role model to these little girls,” she said.
USF begins conference tournament play on Friday in Greenville, North Carolina, facing either Florida Atlantic or Charlotte in the semifinal round.