{"id":147409,"date":"2026-02-02T12:05:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T12:05:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/147409\/"},"modified":"2026-02-02T12:05:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T12:05:08","slug":"previewing-texas-am-softball-ahead-of-abilene-christian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/147409\/","title":{"rendered":"Previewing Texas A&M softball ahead of Abilene Christian"},"content":{"rendered":"

Texas A&M softball<\/a> was busy after its season abruptly ended in the College Station regional<\/a> last May, staying hot on the recruiting trail and snagging players from the transfer portal<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Now, the Softball America preseason No. 14 team<\/a>, is hoping for another strong year that will end in Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

“We were a little out of rhythm in the fall,” head coach Trisha Ford said Wednesday afternoon<\/a>. “This year\u00a0it might take us a little while to get into our rhythm but by the end of the year I think we are going to be into a good rhythm.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder Amari Harper (13) catches the ball at second during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M players huddle on the field during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder Amari Harper (13) celebrates a strikeout during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M outfielder Allie Enright (33) swings at a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Emiley Kennedy (11) takes the field during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Emiley Kennedy (11) catches the ball at the mound during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Emiley Kennedy (11) throws a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder KK Dement (16) celebrates a strikeout during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M fans use bubble blowers to celebrate a score during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M fans watch the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder Amari Harper (13) throws the ball to first during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M outfielder Haley Vestal (19) thrpws the ball to the infield during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder Amari Harper (13) throws the ball to first during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M catcher Olivia Johnson (20) greets pitcher Sydney Lessentine (7) as she takes the field during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Sydney Lessentine (7) throws a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder Amari Harper (13) watches the batter during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Sydney Lessentine (7) throws a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M players huddle on the field during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M head coach Trisha Ford talks to pitcher Sydney Lessentine (7) during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M head coach Trisha Ford talks to pitcher Emiley Kennedy (11) during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Emiley Kennedy (11) throws a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder Mac Barbara (31) runs to first after batting during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M outfielder Allie Enright (33) catches a fly ball during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Kate Munnerlyn (88) throws a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M infielder KK Dement (16) celebrates a strikeout during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M outfielder Haley Vestal (19) picks up a ground ball during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M outfielder Allie Enright (33) steps up to bat during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M players celebrate the 9-7 win over LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Emiley Kennedy (11) celebrates a strikeout during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman<\/p>\n

The Aggies\u00a0won 48 games last season but lost valuable experience to graduation.\u00a0Koko Wooley is no longer anchoring the infield and\u00a0ace\u00a0left-hander\u00a0Emilie Kennedy<\/a>\u00a0is currently playing with the AUSL’s Chicago Bandits<\/a>. A&M also lost utility player Amari Harper<\/a> to Oregon in the transfer portal. With all the changes Ford said “everyone but KP (Kennedy Powell) is playing\u00a0in a new spot.”<\/p>\n

A&M has potential with star\u00a0talent coming back such as\u00a0top-100 preseason players:<\/a>\u00a0designated hitter\u00a0Mya Perez<\/a> and newly declared shortstop KK Dement<\/a>. Ford also signed a 2026 recruiting class that ranks among the top 10 in the countr<\/a>y. But with new faces and roles the Aggies are “just trying to figure things out,” the coach said.<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

MORE:\u00a0Report card for Trisha Ford, Aggies after historic season<\/a><\/p>\n

With Opening Day this week, here’s a look at the 2026 Texas A&M Aggies:<\/p>\n

Sink or swim with the schedule<\/p>\n

The Aggies eased their way into their schedule last season before notching\u00a0nonconference victories against ranked teams, such as\u00a0Baylor and Florida State.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

However, instead of dipping a toe into the water in 2026, the Aggies can expect a maelstrom.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Within the first few days of the season opening, the Aggies will play national\u00a0runners up \u2014 and, according to some outlets the No. 1 team in the country<\/a>,\u2014 Texas Tech. Other ranked\u00a0nonconference teams A&M will see include Oklahoma State, Nebraska and Duke, among others\u00a0(Oregon and UCLA) who punched their ticket to\u00a0OKC.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M head coach Trisha Ford talks to officials ahead of the NCAA D1 Softball Tournament Regional against Saint Francis University at Davis Diamond at Texas A&M University on Friday, May 16, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/Austin American-Statesman<\/p>\n

But conference play presents a different challenge:\u00a0seven of the eight teams on the Aggies’ schedule are\u00a0ranked in the preseason polls’ top 25. The Aggies will face\u00a0Texas<\/a>, Oklahoma, LSU and Ole Miss to name a few.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

If the Aggies can earn some wins in the early part of the season, they will be more than prepared for the SEC gantlet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

MORE:\u00a0Longhorns rank No. 2 in Softball America preseason poll<\/a><\/p>\n

Building up the bullpen\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Aggies used Kennedy a lot last season and why not?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

As Ford’s most reliable pitcher, Kennedy ranks\u00a0ninth all-time<\/a> for A&M with 70 wins. She finished her career sixth all time in strikeouts for the\u00a0Aggies with 568. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Ford said that she wishes the Aggies had more arms with experience at the end of the season (Kennedy threw 158\u2154 innings last season) and they now have it. Taylor Pannell<\/a> who transferred in from Missouri. The left-hander was 5-9 in the circle last season and had 69 strikeouts and allowed 72 hits through 73\u2154 innings. \u00a0<\/p>\n

“She wants the ball at all points in the game and I think she brings a lot of leadership to our bullpen,” Ford said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Texas<\/p>\n

Texas A&M pitcher Kate Munnerlyn (88) throws a pitch during the game against LSU at Davis Diamond on Saturday, April 12, 2025 in College Station, Texas.<\/p>\n

Aaron E. Martinez\/American-Statesman<\/p>\n

The Aggies retained sophomores Sydney Lessentine and Kate Munnderlyn, who took over for the Aggies when Kennedy struggled in the regional. Lessentine set a single-game program record with 19 strikeouts and led the team in ERA (2.85) and opponent batting average (.179). Munnerlyn\u00a0threw<\/a> a career-high 98 pitches through five innings against Liberty and against Southeastern Louisiana, she had seven strikeouts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

“(Munnerlyn) has continued to grow her pitching skills and she’s getting better,” Ford said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Similar to last year, an experienced senior will take center stage in the circle. But the depth should benefit the Aggies in the long run more than last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

MORE: Texas A&M softball ranked by Softball America after disappointing end to 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Impact with the new transfers<\/p>\n

Ford already said that having Pannell and her 129\u2154 career innings\u00a0is going to help the Aggies.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

But what about the other transfers?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Per transfer rules, Ariel Kowalewski, a sophomore transfer from Florida, could not play in\u00a0spring and\u00a0fall 2025. But Ford said she has worked on her game to improve on her 45 hits, seven doubles, one triple and eight home runs she had in 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I’m excited to get her back,” Ford said. “She’ll be at the top of our lineup and do some damage.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Aggies also picked up two transfers from consistent program Oklahoma State: senior infielders Tallen Edwards and Micaela Wark. Both of them helped the Cowgirls appear in the Women’s College World\u00a0Series. Wark finished her career at Oklahoma State<\/a> with 99 RBIs, 29 home runs and a .283 batting average; Edwards finished <\/a>her time with 74 RBIs, 12 home runs and a .304 average.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

Paislie Allen, a sophomore transfer from Georgia, hit .246 with 10 runs and nine RBI for the Bulldogs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Aggies will start finding their rhythm 4:30 p.m.\u00a0Feb. 5 against Abilene Christian.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Texas A&M softball was busy after its season abruptly ended in the College Station regional last May, staying…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":147410,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[61479,27,260,61478,29,28,61480],"class_list":{"0":"post-147409","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-texas","8":"tag-sec-softball","9":"tag-texas","10":"tag-texas-am-aggies","11":"tag-texas-am-aggies-softball","12":"tag-texas-headlines","13":"tag-texas-news","14":"tag-womens-college-world-series"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=147409"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147409\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/147410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=147409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=147409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=147409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}