Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina softball opens its 20th season in 2025 as the Catamounts travel to the River City Leadoff hosted by North Florida in Jacksonville, Fla., this weekend.
WCU opens the tournament battling Jacksonville on Friday (Feb. 7) at 11:30 a.m. before facing the host Ospreys at 4:30 p.m. The schedule remains the same on Saturday (Feb. 8) with a 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. start before UNF and WCU close the weekend on Sunday afternoon with first pitch set for 12:30 p.m. All four scheduled games will have live stats online at CatamountSports.com.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHAT: Western Carolina (18-35, 7-14 SoCon in 24) vs Jacksonville (26-25, 14-10 ASUN in 24)
WHERE: UNF Softball Complex (Jacksonville, Fla.)
WHEN: 11:30 a.m. (Friday) | 2:00 p.m. (Saturday)
LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats
WHAT: Western Carolina at North Florida (35-19, 17-7 ASUN in 24)
WHERE: UNF Softball Complex (Jacksonville, Fla.)
WHEN: 4:30 p.m. (Friday) | 7:00 p.m. (Saturday) | 12:30 p.m. (Sunday)
LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats
FOLLOW THE ACTION
TWITTER: @CatamountSB
Under the direction of 14th-year head coach Jim Clift, Western Carolina begins the 2025 season led by reigning co-Southern Conference Freshman of the Year Lily Bell, who was the lone Catamount named to the Preseason All-SoCon first-team as part of the league's preseason awards unveiled on Jan. 30.
In a historic freshman season, Bell totaled a school-record 72 base hits to rank second in the SoCon last season. Her 41 runs scored placed her fourth in the league and tied for fifth in WCU's single season record book. The Woodstock, Ga., native also swiped a conference-best 34 bases to grab WCU's single-season program record for stolen bases. Her team-leading .387 seasonal batting average finished the regular season, tied for the second-best in the conference.
Bell was one of three freshmen to garner all-freshman team honors in the 2024 postseason, joined by Sydney Dirks and Maya McPherson. Now-senior Tessa Juett was also named first-team all-conference.
Collectively, WCU returns 11 players from last season while adding nine newcomers, including four transfers. Graduate student Imara Harrell (N.C. Central), junior Samantha Ladowski (Pensacola State), junior Rylee Butler (Samford), and sophomore Riley Pennington (Presbyterian) all join WCU in 2025.
Clift welcomes five freshmen to his squad in 2025, including Amanda Fulton (Woodstock, Ga.), Ava Giglio (Irvine, Calif.), Tatum Martin (Denver, N.C.), Courtney Marks (Wesley Chapel, Fla.), and AG Batson (Six Mile, S.C.).
Western Carolina vs. Jacksonville – Friday (Feb. 7) & Saturday (Feb. 8):
Slated as WCU's season-opener with a rematch set for Saturday afternoon, Jacksonville comes off a 26-25 record a season ago, including a 14-10 mark in ASUN play.
The Dolphins' top offensive returner is Madison Bratek, who finished with a .284 average with 40 hits and 29 runs scored last season. Aliston Carter hit .282 with a team-high 11 doubles and three homers with 18 RBIs. Jacksonville's top pitcher returning for the 2025 campaign is Skylar Waggoner, as she finished with a 6-12 record and a 3.02 ERA, tallying a team-high 73 strikeouts.
Jacksonville was tabbed sixth in the 12-team ASUN preseason poll as Bratek and catcher Averi Harcus were named to the league's preseason all-conference team as the Dolphins are under the direction of Erica Ayers, who begins her eighth season at the helm for Jacksonville.
WCU and Jacksonville have met four times before this weekend's action in Jacksonville with the Catamounts winning three of the four previous meetings. Western Carolina won a pair of one-run games over the Dolphins in 2022, 2-1 and 4-3 in nine innings.
Western Carolina at North Florida – Friday (Feb. 7), Saturday (Feb. 8) & Sunday (Feb. 9):
The host Ospreys begin 2025 on Thursday against #3/2 Florida before beginning its home tournament on Friday. UNF finished 2024 with a 35-18 record a season ago, including a 17-7 mark in ASUN play as the Ospreys fell in the conference title game to Florida Gulf Coast.
Allison Benning returns from a strong 2024 season for North Florida, batting .347 with 52 hits, six doubles, 16 homers, 46 RBIs, and 27 runs scored. Benning garnered ASUN Preseason Player of the Year honors and was unanimously selected the all-conference team as a utility/DP. Benning also serves as the top arm for UNF in 2025 after a 19-11 season with 15 complete games, four shutouts, three saves, and a conference-high 200 strikeouts.
Hadlee Reichert finished the 2024 season with a .342 average and a team-high 54 hits, seven doubles, 30 runs, and 13 RBIs.
UNF was picked in a three-way tie for first in the 12-team ASUN preseason poll. Benning was joined by Kirsten Caravaca on the league's preseason all-conference team. The Ospreys are under the direction of Jeff Conrad, who begins his third season as the head coach at North Florida.
WCU and North Florida met twice prior before Friday's matchup in Jacksonville with the Catamounts claiming both meetings in the two schools' histories. Friday's matchup is the first action since 2017, when WCU defeated UNF 4-2 in Jacksonville.
On Deck for Western Carolina:
Following Sunday's finale in Jacksonville, the Catamounts head to the Peach State beginning on Friday, Feb. 14, for the Red & Black Showcase hosted by the University of Georgia in Athens. WCU will play four games in Georgia, facing Michigan, Longwood, Michigan State, and the host Bulldogs. All four games will have live stats available through links on CatamountSports.com. Sunday's tournament finale against the host Georgia will also be shown on SECN+ (paid subscription required).
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.
