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South Carolina softball sets record during NCAA Tournament victory

by: Kevin Miller05/17/25kevinbmiller52
South Carolina softball slugger Arianna Rodi. Photo credit: UGA Athletics
South Carolina softball slugger Arianna Rodi. Photo credit: UGA Athletics

South Carolina softball defeated the Elon Phoenix on Friday night in their first game of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The Gamecocks, who are hosting a Regional for the first time since 2018, beat the Phoenix 5-2 at Beckham Field. They also made some history along the way.

When Mid-Atlantic All-Region first baseman Arianna Rodi sent a two-run homer over the wall in right-center, she broke her own Gamecock record for single-season home runs (17). However, the two runs marked a team record, as well. Backing up Jori Heard’s great showing on the mound in relief, the third-inning blast put the score out of reach for Elon while setting an all-time South Carolina record with 339 runs.

With multiple games still guaranteed for Ashley Chastain Woodard’s group, that record soon will be rewritten again before the 2025 version of the Gamecocks are done.

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With the victory, South Carolina softball will face off Saturday against the North Florida Ospreys. The Columbia Regional’s No. 3 seed knocked off 2-seed Virginia on Friday. The winner of Saturday’s contest will earn a trip to the Regional final. The loser will play against the winner of Virginia and Elon later on Saturday.

First pitch between Carolina and North Florida will be at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. If the Gamecocks win, they won’t play again until Sunday afternoon.

As of the time of this writing, ESPN has not yet announced final television information for the contest. However, fans likely can stream the game on the ESPN app.

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