Thursday, February 13
Clearwater, Fla.
4:00 PM
Texas A&M
vs
Wichita State
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
Photo by: Brendall O'Banon/Texas A&M Athletics
No. 5 Texas A&M Slated for Shriners Children’s Clearwater Invitational
Feb 12, 2025 | Softball
CLEARWATER, Fla. – The No. 5 Texas A&M softball team is slated to open the Shriners Children's Clearwater Invitational against Wichita State on Thursday at 4 p.m. at the Eddie C. Moore Complex.
The Maroon & White return to action Friday against UCF at 10 a.m. Saturday features a top 10 matchup against No. 10 Oklahoma State on ESPN 2 at 9 a.m., followed by a high noon showdown with Virginia before wrapping up the weekend against Charlotte at 8 a.m. on Sunday. Each game will stream on ESPN+.
WHERE THE AGGIES ARE NATIONALLY
Texas A&M (6-0) ranks No. 5 in the ESPN/USA Softball, NFCA and Softball America polls, while D1 Softball place the Aggies at No. 7. The Maroon & White boasts a lethal offense ranking No. 7 nationally with 51 runs in six games, while A&M's .485 on-base percentage is ninth best in the country. The pitching staff has allowed the 10th fewest walks yielding only 26 free bases on opening weekend. Aggies Mac Barbara, Emiley Kennedy and Koko Wooley were named to the USA Softball Top 53 Player of the Year Watch List. The trio also garnered top 100 player rankings given out by D1 Softball and Softball America, while Kennedy was named to the Preseason First-Team All-America team by Softball America and D1 Softball. True freshman KK Dement raked in preseason acknowledgements after D1 Softball and Softball America listed the Selma, California, native, on their preseason top 100 freshmen watch lists.
MAC ATTACK
Barbara wasted no time introducing herself to the 12th Man as she belted three home runs and driving in 13 runs on opening weekend. The sixth-year player finished the weekend 7-for-16, three home runs, one double and four walks to carry an astronomical 1.613 OPS into Clearwater. The graduate has capitalized on her opportunities at the dish hitting .636 (7-for-11) with runners in scoring position, while her seven two-out RBI leads the team.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Seven true freshmen made their collegiate debut on opening weekend, including KK Dement and Frankie Vrazel who appeared in each game and Sydney Lessentine who started in the circle in her debut. Dement started all six games, while Vrazel appeared in each game making five starts. The duo sparked the Aggies to a four-run fifth inning after Dement tripled and Vrazel doubled to score Dement in the comeback win over No. 19 Baylor. The pair stepped up once again the 1-0 victory over ACU when Dement hit a leadoff double in the fourth as Vrazel followed with a double to drive in the lone run of the game. Lessentine tossed a gem in her Aggie debut pitching a complete game shutout against ACU, 1-0. The rookie went 7.0 innings with nine strikeouts, while yielding only two hits and three walks on 104 pitches. Lessentine's nine punchies are the most in an Aggie freshman debut since Samantha Show sat down 15 in 2016.
FROM THE BOTTOM TO THE TOP
Batting at the bottom of the lineup, the Aggie trio of Kramer Eschete, Dement and Vrazel have produced nearly 40% (20-of-51) of Texas A&M's runs this season. Eschete leads the team with a 1.841 OPS, while Vrazel (1.417) and Dement (1.177) each have an OPS higher than 1.175. Eschete has batted ninth in each game this season and leads the Aggies in slugging percentage (1.091), on-base percentage (.750), walks (5) and triples (2).
The Maroon & White return to action Friday against UCF at 10 a.m. Saturday features a top 10 matchup against No. 10 Oklahoma State on ESPN 2 at 9 a.m., followed by a high noon showdown with Virginia before wrapping up the weekend against Charlotte at 8 a.m. on Sunday. Each game will stream on ESPN+.
WHERE THE AGGIES ARE NATIONALLY
Texas A&M (6-0) ranks No. 5 in the ESPN/USA Softball, NFCA and Softball America polls, while D1 Softball place the Aggies at No. 7. The Maroon & White boasts a lethal offense ranking No. 7 nationally with 51 runs in six games, while A&M's .485 on-base percentage is ninth best in the country. The pitching staff has allowed the 10th fewest walks yielding only 26 free bases on opening weekend. Aggies Mac Barbara, Emiley Kennedy and Koko Wooley were named to the USA Softball Top 53 Player of the Year Watch List. The trio also garnered top 100 player rankings given out by D1 Softball and Softball America, while Kennedy was named to the Preseason First-Team All-America team by Softball America and D1 Softball. True freshman KK Dement raked in preseason acknowledgements after D1 Softball and Softball America listed the Selma, California, native, on their preseason top 100 freshmen watch lists.
MAC ATTACK
Barbara wasted no time introducing herself to the 12th Man as she belted three home runs and driving in 13 runs on opening weekend. The sixth-year player finished the weekend 7-for-16, three home runs, one double and four walks to carry an astronomical 1.613 OPS into Clearwater. The graduate has capitalized on her opportunities at the dish hitting .636 (7-for-11) with runners in scoring position, while her seven two-out RBI leads the team.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
Seven true freshmen made their collegiate debut on opening weekend, including KK Dement and Frankie Vrazel who appeared in each game and Sydney Lessentine who started in the circle in her debut. Dement started all six games, while Vrazel appeared in each game making five starts. The duo sparked the Aggies to a four-run fifth inning after Dement tripled and Vrazel doubled to score Dement in the comeback win over No. 19 Baylor. The pair stepped up once again the 1-0 victory over ACU when Dement hit a leadoff double in the fourth as Vrazel followed with a double to drive in the lone run of the game. Lessentine tossed a gem in her Aggie debut pitching a complete game shutout against ACU, 1-0. The rookie went 7.0 innings with nine strikeouts, while yielding only two hits and three walks on 104 pitches. Lessentine's nine punchies are the most in an Aggie freshman debut since Samantha Show sat down 15 in 2016.
FROM THE BOTTOM TO THE TOP
Batting at the bottom of the lineup, the Aggie trio of Kramer Eschete, Dement and Vrazel have produced nearly 40% (20-of-51) of Texas A&M's runs this season. Eschete leads the team with a 1.841 OPS, while Vrazel (1.417) and Dement (1.177) each have an OPS higher than 1.175. Eschete has batted ninth in each game this season and leads the Aggies in slugging percentage (1.091), on-base percentage (.750), walks (5) and triples (2).
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