Offseason Roster Breakdown: What's Next for Virginia Softball?

Examining next year's roster to determine what to expect from the Cavaliers in the 2024 season of UVA softball

Matt Riley/Virginia Athletics

The Virginia softball team finished 30-22 and 8-16 in the ACC in the 2023 season, good for eighth place in the conference. Here’s a look ahead to next season, and what we can expect from the Cavaliers. 

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Last season, the UVA softball team won 30 games, continuing the upward trend after winning 28 games in 2022 and 15 games in 2021. In addition, the coaching staff has recruited back-to-back top 25 recruiting classes. That was all the UVA athletic department needed to see, as director of athletics Carla Williams signed head coach Joanna Hardin to a three-year extension with the hopes of continued improvement. 

The 2023 season had its highs and lows. The best win of the season was a 6-5 win over then-No. 4 Florida State in Tallahassee, where Savanah Henley stranded the tying and winning runs in scoring position to hold onto the win. On the flip side, the season didn’t end as well as the Cavaliers would have hoped, losing seven of their final eight games and failing to qualify for postseason play.

The Cavaliers saw seven players graduate. Pitchers Jenny Bressler, Molly Grube, and Mackenzie Wooten all played important roles in the rotation. Jenny Bressler was only on the team for a year after she played four seasons at UNLV, but she made a significant impact with a 7-3 record and a 2.79 ERA in 75.1 innings of work. Molly Grube was the model of consistency as she appeared in 66 games over her four year career with a career ERA of 3.57. Finally, Mackenzie Wooten was a relief pitcher for UVA, and she finished with a career 7-4 record with a 4.16 ERA.

Moving to position players, infielder Mikaila Fox took home the Coach’s Award for Excellence in her final season as she redshirted. Tori Gilbert played five years at UVA and excelled in the DP position, and leaves Virginia with 34 home runs. Katie Goldberg was a four-year starter at shortstop who made highlight plays look easy, while also hitting .265 in her career. Finally, Gabby Baylog played three seasons at UVA after transferring from Coastal Carolina, and she was a lock-down first baseman in her junior and senior seasons.

The Virginia softball team will miss these seven players and leaders, but there is a lot to be excited about for the new team.

Seniors

There are six seniors that will lead the Cavaliers into the 2023-2024 season. First, utility player Abby Weaver has been a consistent starter at UVA and boasts a .379 career on-base percentage. Lauren VanAssche has been a two-year starter in center field already, and the sure-handed fielder only has one career error. Both Madison Harris and Mikayla Houge didn’t pitch as much in their junior years as they did in their first two years, but they have a golden opportunity to make an impact now that three members of the rotation graduated. Savanah Henley was a clutch relief pitcher that worked 4.2 innings for the save against Florida State and struck out six Clemson batters, both times when those teams were ranked fourth in the country. Finally, Leah Boggs is the sparkplug of the team behind the plate; she was an NFCA All-Region First Team selection her sophomore year and she threw out 11 baserunners this past season.

Juniors

There are six juniors suiting up for Virginia. Kailyn Jones already has 52 starts under her belt after two seasons, and she stole nine bases last season. Sarah Coon has started every game she has played and was the first ever ACC All-Freshman selection in UVA history in 2022. Shelby Barbee saw increased action from her freshman to her sophomore seasons, and had a clutch pinch hit three run homer against No. 13 Virginia Tech. Reece Holbrook and Sydney Hartgrove are in similar situations, and they will both work to see the field more in Joanna Hardin’s lineup. Kelly Ayer rounds out the junior class with a bang. Ayer hit .321 last year and scored 25 runs (second on the team), while going 22 for 23 on stolen bases to tie for the most steals and seventh most in a season at UVA.

Sophomores

The other teammate with 22 steals is sophomore Jade Hylton, who made the NFCA All-Region Team and the All-Freshman ACC team last season. Hylton was a force to be reckoned with at the top of the lineup, hitting .314 as the team leader in runs scored, RBI, and tied for the lead with ten home runs. Eden Bigham was another fantastic freshman, as she was also on the All-Region and All-Freshman teams, while also making the All-ACC Third Team. Bigham went 13-6 with a 2.52 ERA in 111 innings with 115 strikeouts, the most by a UVA freshman since 2016. Mary Caroline Eaton made 15 starts at the beginning of the season before suffering a season-ending injury, so there is a lot to be excited about for her. Southpaw Courtney Layne pitched 28.1 innings and earned two wins for the Cavaliers. Finally, Kelsey Hackett and Kassidy Hudson both appeared in 16 games last season and they will fight for playing time next year.

Freshmen

The future is bright with the six incoming freshmen for Virginia.

To start, Brie Biddle is a two-time All-State selection from Charlotte, North Carolina who can play both infield and outfield, and is listed as the No. 100 overall recruit by Extra Inning Softball. Bella Cabral is the No. 51 overall recruit hailing from Choctaw, Oklahoma and she has numerous All-State and All-Region recognitions. Melissa Carr is a catcher and infielder that is the No. 60 overall recruit from Windsor, Virginia. Julia Cuozzo is the No. 23 overall recruit, and the Mechanicsville, Virginia native led her team to a state championship in 2022. Macee Eaton is the No. 31 overall recruit and has many accolades, including the 2022 NFCA All-America second team selection, and she is from Wheelersburg, Ohio. Kamyria Woody-Giggetts rounds out the committed Hoos, and she is from Halifax, Virginia and was an All-Region and All-State selection.

It will be exciting to see how the newcomers mesh with the returning players, and how the team is able to build upon the 30-win season next spring. 

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