Cullowhee, N.C. – Following a season-opening 11-game road swing, Western Carolina softball opens its 2025 home slate this weekend by hosting the second annual Catamount Classic at the on-campus Catamount Softball Complex. The 10-game, three-day event begins Friday morning.
The Catamounts open the weekend on Friday at 3 p.m. against N.C. A&T before battling Rhode Island at 5:30 p.m. WCU returns to the diamond at 3 p.m. on Saturday for a matchup against Presbyterian before a rematch with Rhode Island at 5:30 p.m. Western Carolina closes out the tournament with a matchup against N.C. A&T with first pitch slated for 12:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Each day of the weekend tournament opens with games at 10 a.m. with live stats on CatamountSports.com.
Friday's doubleheader and Sunday's matchup with N.C. A&T will be shown on ESPN Plus (paid subscription required). All five WCU games will also have live stats through links on CatamountSports.com.
Admission to the tournament – and all home games throughout the 2025 season – is free of charge, presented by First Bank.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHAT: N.C. A&T (2-9) vs Western Carolina (2-9)
WHERE: Catamount Softball Complex (Cullowhee, N.C.)
WHEN: 3 p.m. (Friday) | 12:30 p.m. (Sunday)
WATCH: ESPN+ (Friday) | ESPN+ (Sunday)
WHAT: Rhode Island (1-4) vs Western Carolina
WHERE: Catamount Softball Complex (Cullowhee, N.C.)
WHEN: 5:30 p.m. (Friday) | 5:30 p.m. (Saturday)
WATCH: ESPN+ (Friday)
WHAT: Presbyterian (7-5) vs Western Carolina
WHERE: Catamount Softball Complex (Cullowhee, N.C.)
WHEN: 3 p.m. (Saturday)
FOLLOW THE ACTION
LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats (ALL GAMES)
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
TWITTER: @CatamountSB
About the Catamounts:
Western Carolina debuts on its home field on Friday, coming off a tough 6-4 defeat at the hands of Georgia State on Wednesday night in Atlanta to conclude a season-long 11-game road swing. In the loss, junior Rylee Butler put together a career day with a three-hit performance including her first collegiate homer. Sophomore Maya McPherson tallied a two-run double for her second two-base of the season to tie for the team lead.
Sophomore Lily Bell begins the tournament weekend among the team leaders in numerous offensive categories, including batting average (.406), runs (6), hits (13), on-base percentage (.486), and stolen bases (6). McPherson and freshman AG Batson lead the way in doubles with two apiece as McPherson, graduate student Imara Harrell, and Butler, each with a homer in the young season.
In the circle, Batson leads the squad with a 3.21 ERA over her first five career appearances, four of which were starts. She's tallied 12 strikeouts in 24 innings, including a pair of complete games. Classmate Amanda Fulton has a team-high 16 strikeouts, with her first collegiate win coming against Gardner-Webb last week.
Western Carolina vs. N.C. A&T – Friday (Feb. 28) & Sunday (Mar. 2):
Scheduled as WCU's first opponent in the Catamount Classic on Friday afternoon and its final opponent on Sunday afternoon, N.C. A&T begins the weekend with a 2-9 mark after a midweek defeat to SoCon foe UNCG on Wednesday. The Aggies have already played a pair of SoCon opponents in Wofford and the Spartans last time out. The Aggies earned wins so far in 2025 against Claflin and NCCU.
The Aggies open the weekend with the Blue Hose before squaring off against WCU on Friday afternoon. N.C. A&T has a rematch with PC on Saturday morning before battling URI on Saturday afternoon. WCU and A&T close out the weekend with the final game of the Catamount Classic.
N.C. A&T's offense is led by freshman Jaden James who has recorded a .300 average with six runs scored, four doubles, a triple, and a homer, and has accounted for nine RBI. Junior Katriel Williams begins the weekend with a .297 average, tallying five runs, a pair of doubles, and a team-high two triples. Williams also leads the squad with 12 RBIs and three stolen bases.
In the circle, the Aggies are led by freshman Lauren Hardy, who's recorded a 3.82 ERA in four appearances, including a pair of starts. Senior Joey Barkhimer and sophomore Aaliyah Williams have wins in the circle for N.C. A&T, with Barkhimer leading the Aggies with 23 strikeouts over her eight outings.
N.C. A&T was tabbed 10th in the 12-team Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) poll under the direction of second-year head coach Jose Gonzalez. Gonzalez has spent 14 years at Savannah State and a pair of seasons at Claflin.
WCU holds a commanding 22-6 lead in the all-time series with N.C. A&T as the pair of matchups this weekend mark the first head-to-head battle since 2022. The Aggies earned the eight-inning win in Greensboro last time out between the two squads. The win for N.C. A&T snapped a 14-game skid in the all-time series. WCU has a 9-1 record in Cullowhee in the head-to-head battles.
Western Carolina vs Rhode Island – Friday (Feb. 28) & Saturday (Mar. 1):
Rhode Island (1-4) travels to Cullowhee following its season-opening trip to the Low Country Classic hosted by the College of Charleston. The Rams' lone win came against the host Cougars, while they dropped decisions to Ohio, twice to Dartmouth, and a defeat to CofC. This series opened the 2025 season for URI after their originally scheduled opener at Presbyterian was canceled due to travel issues for the Rams.
Rhode Island begins the weekend with a matchup against Presbyterian before battling WCU on Friday evening. URI squares off with N.C. A&T on Saturday afternoon before a rematch with the Catamounts. The weekend closes with an early start against the Blue Hose on Sunday morning.
Junior outfielder Mandi Hanewich leads the Rams offense with a .385 average (5-for-13) with two runs scored in the young season. Freshman outfielder Allison Jones sits at .333 (3-for-9) with a double and a pair of runs scored. Junior catcher Kylie Bulinski connected on the lone homer for URI last weekend.
In the circle, junior Ashley Hibbard (1-1) leads the Rams with a 1.40 ERA in a pair of starts. Hibbard has tallied eight strikeouts in 10 innings of work. Freshman Brooke Gerry has tallied seven strikeouts in five innings of bullpen work.
Rhode Island was tabbed ninth in the 10-team Atlantic-10 preseason poll under the direction of first-year head coach Mike Coutts, who spent nine seasons leading Maine and the Colorado School of Mines before joining URI this spring. He entered the season with 165 career wins.
WCU and Rhode Island have met twice before, with both teams claiming a win in the head-to-head series. Both prior meetings took place in Woodstock, Ga., with Western Carolina winning 5-0 in 2012, while the Rams defeated the Catamounts 5-2 during the 2010 season.
Western Carolina vs. Presbyterian – Saturday (Mar. 1)
The first of three meetings with the Blue Hose is Saturday afternoon. Presbyterian (7-5) hits the road for the first time in the 2025 season with this weekend's trek to Cullowhee. PC and WCU meet on Tuesday, March 4, in a doubleheader in Clinton to conclude the three-game stretch. The Blue Hose have hosted three straight tournaments to begin the 2025 campaign. Among those seven victories, one was a win over SoCon foe ETSU.
Presbyterian battles N.C. A&T and Rhode Island on Friday before a rematch with the Aggies on Saturday, along with its lone meeting with WCU. PC closes the weekend on Sunday with an early start against the Rams to conclude the tournament.
Senior Mallory Fletcher leads the Blue Hose with a .457 average (16-of-35). She's tallied a team-high five doubles, a triple, a pair of homers, and a team-best eight RBIs. Two-way standout sophomore Kasey Wolfe sits with a .412 batting average including three doubles and seven RBIs. Junior Blair Darby has a pair of homers to tie with Fletcher for the team lead.
In the circle, sophomore transfer Kayla Roberts has not allowed an earned run in limited work with 2.1 innings. PC is led by Wolfe, who is 2-2 with a 2.05 ERA. She has tossed 30.2 innings with 17 strikeouts. Junior Peyton Duncan has a team-high three wins as she's worked a team-high 35.1 innings with 23 strikeouts.
Presbyterian was picked seventh in the seven-team Big South preseason poll led by Wolfe, who garnered all-conference honors from the league's coaches. David Williams is in his seventh season at the helm for the Blue Hose as 2025 begins his 20th season coaching with previous stops at Mars Hill and Morehead State. Williams has totaled 461 wins in his coaching career.
WCU and PC have played 27 times before Saturday's meeting in Cullowhee with the Blue Hose holding a 15-12 lead in the all-time series. Western Carolina has taken the two prior meetings with a doubleheader sweep in Cullowhee last season. In last year's sweep, Tessa Juett tossed 11.1 innings, allowing three earned runs and tallying 12 strikeouts as she earned both wins. Lily Bell went 7-for-9 at the plate with four RBIs and a double over the doubleheader. Mattie Mentel added four hits as Taylor Waitley had a pair of base knocks, including a double.
On Deck for Western Carolina:
Following Sunday's finale of the Catamount Classic in Cullowhee, the Catamounts begin a seven-game road swing with a trip to Clinton, S.C., to battle Presbyterian at the on-campus PC Softball Complex. WCU and PC will square off in a twin bill beginning at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Mar. 4. Both games will have live stats available on CatamountSports.com (Game One) | (Game Two).
Keep track of everything related to Catamount softball and WCU Athletics through social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/CatamountSports), Twitter (@Catamounts, @CatamountSB), and Instagram (wcu_catamounts, catamountsb), or go to www.CatamountSports.com.
