RANKINGS
EVENTS
I COMMITTED
COLLEGE
ABOUT
We continue our list of the Top 15 Softball Stories of 2021, which will run through December 31st when we’ll present our No. 1 story of the year.
Here are the previous stories (clink on link to read):
- #15… FAU’s Riley Ennis Feels Her Team’s Support After Hurricane Devastation
- #14… Four Football Helmets, One Anonymous Bidder, and a Difference Made for ULM Softball
- #13… High School & Club Coaching Great Mark Campbell Remembered in Collegiate Classic Bearing His Name
- #12… TV Ratings Continue to Climb – & Viewership Records Set – on Softball Telecasts
- #11… Former Softballer Rachel Balkovec Makes History in Professional Baseball
Also, on New Year’s Day 2023, we’ll list all 15 of the top stories of the year as well as run 15 more that were considered.
We’ve surveyed the softball community and talked internally as well to come up with what were the most impactful and relevant stories of the year pertaining to the world of fastpitch softball.
Where applicable, we are providing the text to the original articles and/or references when the story first happened.
- Click Here to see the Top 15 Stories of 2021
- Click Here to see the Top 15 Stories of 2020
- Click Here to see the Top 15 Stories of 2019
- Click Here to see the Top 15 Stories of 2018
To provide comments, insights or thoughts, email: [email protected].
*****
Today’s Story of the Year: #10:
The Transfer Portal Winds On; Are College Superteams Now a Thing?
The transfer portal is nothing new; in fact, to some people in softball and in college sports in general, it’s almost hard to remember a time when the portal didn’t exist. Still just a few years old, the portal has fundamentally changed the way college athletics are done.
In the past, college coaches were on the recruiting trail and at a travel ball tournament nearly every weekend of the summer; now, some programs have staff members who barely leave home at all and are in charge of making potential transfers feel at their best during visits.
Transfer “recruiting classes” can often get considerably more attention than a program’s group of incoming freshmen.
A new phenomenon this year was the dawn of so-called “superteams” – teams already at a strong point who went into the transfer portal, pulled out considerable talent, and got even stronger. Teams that utilized the portal to gain an even-greater advantage than ever before.
Oklahoma added four players, three of them All-Americans. UCLA picked up four players, all from other PAC-12 programs. Oklahoma State checked in with possibly the biggest transfer class of anyone, adding seven new players to their roster via the portal.
Alongside the teams adding en masse, some Power 5 teams saw major subtractions via the portal – teams that played in the Women’s College World Series, won conference championships, and hosted regionals all saw mass exits from their programs.
College softball looks very different than it did just a few years ago. The transfer portal and it’s continued evolution – and other factors deriving from its existence – are large parts of that very different look.
*****
Sophie Page Transferring to Oklahoma State; Cowgirl Transfer Class Grows
Originally published July 19, 2022 on Extra Inning Softball
Former UAB infielder Sophie Page announced her plans to transfer to Oklahoma State on Tuesday.
With the addition of Page, Oklahoma State has now added seven new players via the portal this summer. The group also includes pitchers Lexi Kilfoyl and Ivy Rosenberry and infielders Rachel Becker, Alexx Waitman, Megan Bloodworth, and Micaela Wark.
As a freshman at UAB in 2022, Page started 24 games through appearing in a total of 42 matchups. She posted a batting average of .239, recording a total of eleven hits and scoring six runs.
Page also recorded a .504 OPS and six RBIs during her rookie year.
Two Arizona Standouts Enter Transfer Portal
Originally published July 1, 2022 on Extra Inning Softball
Arizona standouts Janelle Meono and Sharlize Palacios have entered the NCAA’s transfer portal, sources confirmed to Extra Inning Softball on Friday.
Palacios, a true junior during the 2022 season, has two years of eligibility remaining. During the 2022 season, she finished fifth on the Wildcats’ roster with a .326 batting average, notching 20 home runs and a team-leading 64 RBIs.
During the Cats’ impressive postseason run, Palacios was one of the team’s more consistent hitters. She recorded at least one base hit in all but two games during the NCAA tournament and notched three home runs and eight RBIs along the way.
Meono spent a significant portion of the 2022 season out with an injury; despite not playing from March 3 to April 23, she collected a .291 batting average in 117 at-bats and recorded 23 runs scored, four stolen bases, and a .661 OPS.
Also a true junior during the 2022 season, Meono has two years of eligibility remaining.
With the departure of the two offensive stalwarts, the UA offense still boasts the return of their four leading hitters, including All-American Allie Skaggs.
Michigan’s Alex Storako, Hannah Carson Enter Transfer Portal
Originally published May 24, 2022 on Extra Inning Softball
Michigan pitcher Alex Storako and catcher Hannah Carson each entered the NCAA’s transfer portal on Tuesday, sources confirmed to Extra Inning Softball.
Both Storako and Carson carry a graduate transfer designation; both players carry a single year of remaining eligibility.
An All-American pitcher in 2021, Storako was the unanimous Big Ten Pitcher of the Year that season. She finishes her Wolverine career with a 1.71 lifetime ERA, 69 wins, and 901 strikeouts in more than 563 innings of work.
This season, Storako reached the 300-strikeout plateau for the first time in her career. She also earned a career-high 25 wins in the circle.
A three-year starter behind the plate for the Wolverines, Carson committed only eight errors in the field and recorded more than 1,100 putouts. She enjoyed the finest offensive season of her career in 2022, batting .329 at the plate with five home runs and 37 RBIs to her credit on the year.
Storako is a Frankfort, Illinois native; Carson hails from Weidman, Michigan.
On Instagram on Tuesday, both Storako and Carson posted goodbye messages to the Maize and Blue.
“Thank you, Michigan,” Storako’s post began. “For the best last 4 years. It has been an honor to wear the Block M and represent one of the best universities in the world. I’ve met some amazing people along the way. Learned from some of the best. But more importantly, I’ve grown. I’ve grown into a better athlete, pitcher, student and person. And I wouldn’t have been able to do it without some of the strongest teammates, friends and coaches. It has been an absolute dream wearing Michigan across my chest. I can’t wait to see what the next chapter entails. For today, goodbye…For tomorrow, good luck & Forever, Go Blue 💛”
Carson’s post portrayed a similar message of her now-alma mater:
“Thank you to the place that has been home to me for the past 4 years. I have been so blessed to attend and play softball for the University of Michigan. I have met some of the greatest people and my lifelong friends along the way. I am so grateful that I had this opportunity and I will forever cherish the memories made. I am so excited for what the future holds. Forever, go blue!💙”
Alabama’s Lexi Kilfoyl, Dallis Goodnight Enter Transfer Portal
Originally published May 24, 2022 on Extra Inning Softball
Alabama pitcher Lexi Kilfoyl and outfielder Dallis Goodnight have entered the NCAA’s transfer portal, sources confirmed to Extra Inning Softball on Tuesday.
Kilfoyl spent the last three seasons with the Crimson Tide and has two years of eligibility remaining.
This season, Kilfoyl pitched 80 innings, posting a 2.36 ERA and 79 strikeouts while limiting opponents to a .218 batting average. An All-Region selection following the 2021 season, Kilfoyl owns 28 career wins in the circle.
Goodnight, a true freshman in 2022, was an every day starter in the outfield for the Crimson Tide. She finished third on the team with a .302 batting average on the year, with 42 hits, 33 runs scored, and a team-leading 18 stolen bases to her credit.
The pair join two other Crimson Tide players, Abby Doerr and Jenna Lord, in entering the portal since Alabama’s surprising loss to Stanford at home in the Tuscaloosa regional.