Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina softball opens the book on its 21st season in 2026 with a program-first as the Catamounts now host a season-opening nonconference doubleheader against North Carolina A&T at the Catamount Softball Complex, rescheduled on Tuesday afternoon.
Wednesday's action initially slated for Greensboro has been moved to Cullowhee due to remnants of the most recent winter storm throughout the Carolinas, causing unsafe field conditions in the Piedmont. Wednesday marks the first time that WCU has begun a season at home in school history as part of a now program-record 30 home games in the 2026 campaign.
The doubleheader with the Aggies is slated for a 2 p.m. start in Cullowhee, with both games having live stats available online at CatamountSports.com.
SOFTBALL MATCHUP: N.C. A&T (2-3) vs. Western Carolina (0-0)
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 11
Time: 2:00 p.m. (Doubleheader)
Site: Catamount Softball Complex (Cullowhee, N.C.)
Live Stats: Stat Broadcast (Game One) | Stat Broadcast (Game Two)
Twitter: @CatamountSB
About Western Carolina:
Under the direction of 15th-year head coach Jim Clift, Western Carolina begins the 2026 season led by a quartet of Preseason All-Southern Conference honorees. WCU saw juniors Lily Bell and Sydney Dirks land on the first team, with Bell honored as an infielder and Dirks named first-team outfield and second-team designated player. Senior outfielder Rylee Butler and junior third baseman Maya McPherson were both named to the second team.
WCU's four selections mark the most named to the league's preseason teams since 2023 and the most spots, five, since 2022, which set a program record. The quartet leads an offensive group that posted the best team batting average (.282) since the 2006 debut season for the Purple & Gold, which saw the Catamounts finish at .283. WCU returns all seven of its qualified hitters from a season ago, led by Bell at .455.
The Catamounts were picked sixth in the 2025 SoCon Preseason Poll, as voted by the league's coaches. Despite the middle-third prognostication, WCU was one of four teams to earn a first-place vote in the league's selections.
Collectively, WCU returns 13 players from last season while adding nine freshmen to the squad in 2026. Clift welcomes in Amari Burce (Lula, Ga.), Briony Bunsic (Morristown, Tenn.), Sydnee Bumgarner (Granite Falls, N.C.), Emily Murphy (Mooresville, N.C.), Kayden Lyda (Fletcher, N.C.), Natalie Regan (Greer, S.C.), Kimber Shambley (Durham, N.C.), Emma Kindle (Tampa, Fla.), and Autumn Russell (Blue Ridge, Va.).
Scouting the Opposition – N.C. A&T Aggies:
North Carolina A&T (2-3) opened the season last weekend, earning a pair of wins over Maine and Evansville, while falling to Mercer twice and suffering a defeat to the Black Bears in its opening five games.
The Aggies were picked in a tie for eighth in the two-division 11-team CAA Preseason Poll and were tabbed fifth in the six-team South Division. NC A&T is coached by Jose Gonzalez, who is in his third season at the helm in Greensboro after serving 16 combined years at Claflin and Savannah State.
Junior outfielder Destiny Sims led the Aggies with a .353 batting average, as she tallied six hits, including two doubles. Junior utility Shandi Brown had four hits over the opening weekend, including a three-hit game. Sophomore catcher Tyra Robinson tallied two homers for the Aggies over the first five games, the only two long-balls for the squad.
Junior pitcher/outfielder Aaliyah Williams leads the Aggies with a 1-0 mark over three outings with 15 strikeouts over 15.2 innings. Sophomore pitcher/outfielder Lauren Hardy picked up the squad's other victory over three appearances with four strikeouts.
Hardy, along with junior infielder Trinity Glover, each garnered honorable mention from the preseason All-CAA team as announced by voting from the league's coaches.
All-time Series History:
The Catamounts and Aggies have met 30 times before Wednesday's doubleheader tilt, with WCU holding a 24-6 all-time lead in the series. WCU earned back-to-back shutout victories over the Aggies in last season's Catamount Classic in Cullowhee. WCU has controlled the series in Cullowhee earning 11 of 12 decisions from the Aggies.
Last Season vs N.C. A&T
During the two-game sweep of the Aggies during the 2025 Catamount Classic, WCU posted a .396 team batting average led by a trio of returners to the squad in 2026, as Bell, Butler, and now-senior catcher Taylor Waitley each posted a .500 average. The Catamounts had a balanced attack with no one tallying more than three hits. Amanda Fulton and AG Batson combined to toss 12 shutout innings, with Fulton tallying 13 strikeouts and two hits allowed in her win. The Aggies totaled just four hits over the 12 innings played.
On Deck for Western Carolina:
Following Wednesday's doubleheader in Cullowhee, the Catamounts head to Charleston for their first full weekend of action in the Low Country Classic co-hosted by the College of Charleston and Charleston Southern. WCU will play five games against Penn, Akron, UConn, and the co-host Cougars. All five games will have live stats available through links on CatamountSports.com. Saturday night's showdown against the Cougars will also be shown on FloSports (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.
