South Carolina softball announces top 10 recruiting class

South Carolina softball coach Ashley Chastain Woodard had a record-breaking first year leading her alma mater last season. The Gamecocks won 44 games and earned a top-eight national host seed. The big-time season saw USC finish in the top 15 of all four major polls. That included a best-ever No. 10 finish according to the USA Softball/ESPN.com.

Offseason polls from Softball America all put South Carolina between No. 12 and No. 17, meaning the Gamecocks will be right in the mix again in 2026.

On Thursday, the University of South Carolina announced the team’s class of 2026 recruiting class. The No. 9-ranked national signing class (per both Softball America and D1Softball) indicates that Chastain Woodard and company won’t be slowing down anytime soon.

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Class of 2027 five-star, No. 1 overall prospect Aspen Boulware reclassified to 2026 and headlines the class. The Gray Collegiate Academy product and Columbia native finished No. 7 in the ’26 cycle. She was also No. 1 in the Pallmet State and the top middle infield recruit in the country.

Kadyn Gabrels (four-star corner infielder; No. 46 overall, No. 20 among corner infielders), Boo Herber (four-star right-handed pitcher; No. 68 overall, No. 19 among pitchers), Alex Williams (four-star outfielder; No. 70 overall, No. 14 among outfielders), Jillian Ondrick (four-star right-handed pitcher; No. 131 overall, No. 38 among pitchers), Libby Miller (three-star right-handed pitcher), Hayden Sujack (three-star catcher), and Hannah Wulf (three-star left-handed pitcher) make up the rest of the highly touted class.

The class of 2026 will join the South Carolina softball program next summer. The new Gamecocks will begin competing at USC ahead of the 2027 season.

The 2026 team will begin the regular season on Thursday, February 5th, against Virginia Tech. You can see the full schedule here.

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