A complete look at South Carolina softball's roster heading into fall

After a historic 2025 season at South Carolina, head coach Ashley Chastain Woodard is ready to run it back in 2026.

The Gamecocks emerged as one of the best teams not just in the SEC, but also in the whole country, during Chastain Woodard’s first season at the helm. South Carolina finished the campaign with a 44-17 overall record (13-11 in SEC play), reaching the NCAA Super Regionals and setting multiple program records along the way.

That’ll be a tough act to follow, but South Carolina will lay down the groundwork to surpass those marks this fall. The Gamecocks have an intra-squad scrimmage scheduled for Saturday before kicking off a nine-game slate of preseason matchups. That slate will culminate in the team’s Garnet & Black World Series, which will take place Oct. 27-29.

South Carolina announced its full list of players and jersey numbers on Aug. 27. Here’s a full look at the Gamecocks’ roster, in jersey number order.

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No. 1: Precious Bross (Sophomore, Utility Player) — 2025 will serve as a homecoming for Bross, a Columbia native who spent her freshman season at Georgia. She was used primarily as a pinch-runner last year, making 32 appearances off the bench. Bross went a combined 2-5 at the plate with nine runs and one stolen base.

No. 2: Dakota Potter (Freshman, Outfielder) — A four-star prospect from California, Potter is South Carolina’s highest-ranking recruit, according to Softball America. She is the No. 10 player at her position and No. 55 nationally in the class of 2025. Potter is a career .400 hitter and led Norco High School to the Division 1 California Interscholastic Federation Championship game this past spring.

No. 3: Shae Anderson (Sophomore, Infielder) — Anderson played in 22 games, making six starts, with the Gamecocks last year. She made her collegiate debut in South Carolina’s Opening Day matchup against Virginia on Feb. 6, going 1-3 with an RBI. Overall, Anderson hit .188 with one double, five RBI and seven runs.

No. 4: Tori Ensley (Junior, Utility Player) — Ensley was one of the Gamecocks’ first transfer portal commitments this offseason, making her pledge official shortly after South Carolina’s postseason run ended. She started all 54 of NC State’s games as an outfielder last year, finishing the season with a .294 batting average, 13 doubles, three home runs and an .803 OPS.

No. 6: Ansley Bennett (Freshman, Utility Player) — Bennett heads into her freshman season coming off a decorated high school career. She was named the South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year in both 2023 and 2024. During the latter season, Bennett’s 0.16 ERA, 13 home runs and 41 RBI helped lead Summerville High School to a perfect 30-0 record.

MORE: Inside insights on some of South Carolina’s position battles

No. 7: Lexie Shaver (Redshirt Junior, Infielder) — Shaver brings experience at the junior college and NCAA Division I levels to the Gamecocks’ roster. She spent two seasons at Salt Lake Community College before transferring to Kennesaw State ahead of the 2025 campaign. While there, she played in 53 games (starting 52) for the Owls, hitting .278 with four home runs, 26 RBI and 25 runs.

No. 8: Tate Davis (Sophomore, Infielder) — Davis, a Greer native, is one of six Palmetto State representatives on South Carolina’s squad. She spent her freshman season at Ole Miss, where she hit .182 across 11 at-bats in 15 games. Davis launched her first collegiate home run, a two-run shot that solidified a 9-1 run-rule victory over North Dakota State, on March 14.

No. 9: Alyssa Hovermale (Junior, Infielder) — Hovermale, who shares a Californian hometown with Potter, will be looking to make her return from injury in 2026. Last season, she made just two appearances before being placed on the shelf for the rest of the year. Hovermale was a career .263 hitter with five RBI across her two seasons at Florida.

No. 10: Josey Marron (Senior, Pitcher) — By making her commitment official on May 30, Marron became South Carolina’s first transfer portal addition of the offseason. She boasts SEC experience, having spent the past three seasons at Mississippi State. Marron endured some struggles in the circle last year, pitching to a 6.77 ERA while walking 40 batters and striking out 36 across 50.2 innings pitched. But as recent as two years ago, she finished her freshman campaign with a 2.38 ERA.

No. 11: Kai Byars (Freshman, Outfielder) — Softball America is also high on Byars, as she is the outlet’s No. 68 player in the country, No. 2 in the state of Virginia and No. 12 outfielder in the class of 2025. A three-time All-State selection at Hanover High School, she was also a three-time All-Region selection and was named to the All-Metro Team twice.

No. 12: Sage Scarmardo (Senior, Infielder) — Scarmardo had a strong season at the plate for Purdue last season (.283 batting average, 11 RBI and 24 runs), but she is more renowned for her defensive prowess. She ended last season with a .963 fielding percentage and an appearance on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.” Her diving catch against Michigan during the Big Ten Tournament on May 9 ranked No. 4 on the show’s “Top Ten Plays” that day.

No. 13: Emma Friedel (Junior, Pitcher) — Friedel makes up the second half of the two-player contingent of Kennesaw State transfers. She led the Owls’ pitching staff in nearly every statistical category last season, finishing with a 3.42 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, seven wins, nine complete games (four of which were shutouts) and 132 strikeouts across 127 innings pitched. Friedel made 31 appearances last year, including 17 starts.

No. 15: Lexi Winters (Senior, Catcher) — Winters, a former Charlotte transfer and Lexington native, maintained a consistent presence behind the plate in her first season at South Carolina. She played in all 61 of the Gamecocks’ games (starting 59), finishing second with 53 RBI, a single-season mark that ranks tied-fifth in program history. She hit .331 with six home runs, 13 doubles and a .527 slugging percentage.

No. 16: Arianna Rodi (Senior, Infielder) — Rodi moved from Charlotte to South Carolina alongside Chastain Woodard and immediately made a positive impact on the Gamecock softball program. She set single-season program records in home runs (17) and walks (49), in addition to logging a .333 batting average, 55 RBI and a 1.201 OPS across 58 starts. Rodi also flashed the leather, finishing the campaign with a .995 fielding percentage at first base and becoming the first South Carolina player to win a Rawlings Gold Glove Award.

No. 18: KG Favors (Freshman, Pitcher) — Favors was the model of consistency at Orange Beach High School. She accomplished the same feats over the past three seasons: being named the Alabama High School Athletic Association MVP, landing a spot on the All-State team, and leading her school to an AAHSA State Championship.

No. 20: Jamie Mackay (Senior, Catcher) — Mackay, also an Ole Miss transfer, brings Women’s College World Series experience to South Carolina, as she drove in two runs against Oregon during the closing stages of last season. She made 36 appearances (including 20 starts) in 2025, batting .284 with six doubles, two home runs and 12 RBI.

No. 21: Natalie Heath (Redshirt Senior, Infielder) — Another Gamecock returnee, Heath appeared in the lineup almost exclusively as a designated player last season. Along with finishing second on the team in both home runs (6) and hit-by-pitches (7), she hit .282 with 21 RBI across 40 appearances, 33 of which were starts. Her highlight of the 2025 campaign was hitting a game-winning home run against National Pitcher of the Year NiJaree Canady in a March 22 matchup against Texas Tech.

No. 22: Nia McKnight (Sophomore, Outfielder) — McKnight served as the Gamecocks’ go-to pinch-runner last year. She played in 40 games, going 5-5 in stolen base attempts and scoring 15 runs. McKnight recorded a double in her lone at-bat against Furman on April 29.

No. 24: Nealy Lamb (Junior, Pitcher) — Lamb carried positive momentum from her freshman season at Charleston Southern, during which she was named the Big South Conference Pitcher of the Year, into 2025. The Cades native pitched to a 10-3 record and 3.26 ERA, striking out 81 hitters and walking 27 across 73 innings pitched. Lamb made 16 starts and 29 total appearances in the circle last year.

No. 25: Jori Heard (Senior, Pitcher) — Heard emerged as one of the nation’s top pitchers in 2025. A National Fastpitch Coaches Association Second Team All-Region selection, Heard pitched to an 18-3 record, 2.79 ERA and 1.21 WHIP, in addition to earning 115 strikeouts and 43 walks across 140.2 innings pitched. Three of her 44 appearances (and 21 starts) resulted in complete-game shutouts.

No. 33: Karley Shelton (Junior, Infielder) — Shelton, a Lexington native from an athletic family (both her parents and siblings played college baseball or softball), was an offensive spark plug for South Carolina last season. She started all 61 of the Gamecocks’ games at second base, leading the team in hits (68), runs (58) and doubles (18), while finishing second in batting average (.343) and fourth in RBI (41).

No. 43: Quincee Lilio (Redshirt Senior, Outfielder) — Lilio joined South Carolina as a three-time national champion after spending her entire collegiate career up to that point at Oklahoma. By season’s end, she was the Gamecocks’ best contact hitter, leading the team in both batting average (.359) and on-base percentage (.485). A NFCA All-Region Third Team selection, she finished second on the Gamecocks in hits (66), runs (52) and walks (45), while starting all 61 of their games.

No. 55: Julie Kelley (Sophomore, Pitcher) — Kelley is switching SEC allegiances after spending her first collegiate season with Kentucky. While with the Wildcats, she pitched to a 5-5 record and 4.83 ERA with 32 strikeouts across 62.1 innings pitched. One of her 24 appearances (and 10 starts) came against South Carolina last year, as she pitched 5.1 innings of three-run ball in what would be a 7-0 win for the Gamecocks on April 21.

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