Bama Central

Louisiana Transfer INF Brooke Ellestad Commits to Alabama Softball

The Crimson Tide picked up its second addition from the transfer portal this week.

Katie Windham

Brooke Ellestad
Brooke Ellestad / @BrookeEllestad on X

Alabama softball has picked up its second infielder from the transfer portal this week.

Former Louisiana third baseman Brooke Ellestad announced her commitment to the Crimson Tide Thursday morning on social media.

The infielder started 61 of 64 games for the Ragin' Cajuns last season, hitting .359 with nine home runs and 54 RBIs and a .564 slugging percentage. She led the team in RBIs and was tied for the team's best total in home runs. (All of those statistics would have led Alabama in 2024.)

Originally from Kimberly, Wisconsin, Ellestad spent her first two collegiate seasons at St. Thomas in Minnesota before transferring to Louisiana last season. She will have one year of eligibility remaining with Alabama.

At Louisiana, she earned NFCA All-Central Region Third Team honors in 2024 and was named to the All-Sun Belt First Team. The Ragin' Cajuns were the No. 13 seed in the NCAA Tournament and beat Oklahoma last season during non-conference play.

Ellestad is the fifth portal commitment for the Crimson Tide joining Northern Iowa utility Alexis Pupillo, pitcher Catelyn Riley, pitcher Emily Winstead and infielder Salen Hawkins. The only player to transfer out this offseason was infielder Kenleigh Cahalan.

Alabama needed to replace at least two of the starting infield spots with third baseman Bailey Dowling graduating and Cahalan transferring to Florida. Ellestad will likely slide into the third base role.

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Katie Windham
KATIE WINDHAM

Katie Windham is the assistant editor for BamaCentral, primarily covering football, basketball gymnastics and softball. She is a two-time graduate of the University of Alabama and has covered a variety of Crimson Tide athletics since 2019 for outlets like The Tuscaloosa News, The Crimson White and the Associated Press before joining BamaCentral full time in 2021. Windham has covered College Football Playoff games, the Women's College World Series, NCAA March Madness, SEC Tournaments and championships in multiple sports. 

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