Texas A&M softball is hosting a regional in the NCAA Tournament and as the overall No. 1 seed, they will host a Super Regional if they make it through the double-elimination first round. This is the second straight year the Aggies hosted a regional in College Station.
The Aggies broke into the Super Regional last year but they lost to Texas in a best-of-three series in Austin. Texas A&M’s best finish since its 1987 NCAA championship was in 2008, when they were still in the Big 12. The Aggies were runners-up in the national title against Arizona State.
This week, the Aggies are hosting Saint Francis, Marist (4-0 all-time against A&M) and Liberty (3-1). These are teams the Aggies’ record book is familiar with, but not head coach Trisha Ford or her Aggies. The winner of Saint Francis and Texas A&M goes on to play the winner of Liberty and Marist.
Games begin Friday and continue through Sunday.
Here is a brief scouting report on the Aggies’ first opponent:
Saint Francis Red Flash softball: What to know
Conference: Northeast Conference
Record: 26-24, 14-7
Last season: 41-14, 24-0; finished fourth in Austin regional
The team that the Aggies are least familiar with is the team they play first.
In head coach Beth Krysiak’s second season, the Red Flash reached its second straight NCAA tournament. Senior infielder Olivia Ulam leads the team with 10 double plays. Ulam also holds two program records in putouts, 450 in 2022 and 445 in 2024; she has 373 this season.
Saint Francis’ lineup has some pop and is 48th in the country with doubles with 1.52 per game. Ulam is tied for fifth in the record books with 19 doubles in 2024 and is tied with 14 this season with junior outfielder Savannah Nash.
In the NEC conference tournament, Saint Francis went 3-0 against Fairleigh-Dickenson, Central Connecticut State University and Long Island University. Sophomore Allie Braly (15-11, 2.41 ERA) does the majority of the pitching for the Red Flash. Through 142⅓ innings Braly has 67 strikeouts and 16 complete games. The next four pitchers for Saint Francis have won a combined total of 11 games.
Saint Francis played four Power Five teams throughout the season. Two of those games were in February for the Gamecock Classic, losing to Virginia and South Carolina. For weekday April action, the Red Flash was run-ruled by Penn State and Pitt.
Follow the American-Statesman on Facebook and X for more. Your subscription makes work like this possible. Access all of our best content with this tremendous offer.