May 30, 2025.
The 2025 Gators softball team’s final outing. Florida’s Women’s College World Series campaign was cut short after surrendering 11 runs in just five innings during an elimination date with Tennessee.
Last season marked Florida’s 13th WCWS appearance and third in four years. The program watched as six seniors played the last softball of their collegiate careers. The graduates, paired with one transfer, left the Gators without four of nine starters.
Senior catcher Jocelyn Erickson emerged in Gainesville during her sophomore year, but has made it a point to take this season day-by-day.
“We’re just trying to keep it simple and take it one step at a time,” Erickson said. “Obviously, we’re not going to be in Oklahoma City tomorrow, so we just have to enjoy the journey and take it one step at a time.”
Erickson took home the Rawlings Gold Glove Award for the second consecutive season thanks to her dominance behind the dish.
She, along with junior Ava Brown, were named team captains, head coach Tim Walton announced Tuesday.
Brown has seen the majority of action as a utility player, both pitching and playing first base. The Texas native ranked No. 1 in saves among all Southeastern Conference pitchers in 2025.
The two powerhouses were extremely instrumental in the team’s WCWS run. Erickson was one of four Gators to start all 65 games. She also held a .303 batting average with 59 RBIs in 175 attempts.
Brown held an 11-3 record in the circle while also notching her first career multi-home run contest.
Both upperclassmen’s impact on the field, paired with their leadership in the locker room, led to the captain accolade.
“It’s one thing for your coach to vote you a captain, but your teammates voting you a captain is something totally removed from the coaching staff,” Walton said. “They see you when the coaches don’t, they hear you when the coaches don’t, and I’m proud of that for [Erickson].”
The catcher is among the eldest of players on Florida’s roster, playing a key role in the development of the younger pieces. Both she and Brown said earning the captain title is bigger than the product on the field.
“It creates a really deep level of trust as well,” Brown said. “I feel like it really touched home in a sense of just how they see us as people.”
With this season’s slate welcoming a slew of transfers and first-years, both Brown and Erickson’s role as a mentor will be one of her most instrumental.
Giulia Desiderio and Ella Wesoloski are two of the freshest faces on the roster. The catchers are each familiar with SEC competition, transferring from South Carolina and Mississippi State, respectively.
The pair will learn the ins and outs of the program behind Erickson heading into the season.
“I love them so much. It has been super fun to work with them because they've pushed me to become better, and I hope that I've pushed them to become better, too,” Erickson said. “We call ourselves ‘the catcher gang’, and we just have that tight bond.”
Being a mentor for a position group adds a familial feeling among the team. Whether it be the catchers or the remaining 14 players, forming a cohesive bond is at the forefront of 2026.
“I’ve never experienced that before in my career here, and I truly feel like this is just such a special team and a special group of people,” Brown said. “The fact that it’s not forced and all the relationships have happened naturally, I feel like is just such a blessing because not everybody gets to experience that.”
The third-year said the team has taken part in team dinners, pajama parties and movie nights. Brown also said that Walton has not obliged them to create bonding activities.
Brown has a mentorship of her own. Florida welcomed pitcher Caroline Stanton in this year’s freshman class. The former No. 1 recruit has quickly made her mark as a Gator, despite being one of the youngest of the group.
“I know coming in, that’s not easy for anybody,” Brown said. “I give a lot of credit to her because she very easily could've come in and been shy and not really put herself out there.”
Stanton graduated from Buford High School a semester early to join the Gators and had a whirlwind of three months. She won her third Georgia state championship in November and earned her diploma in December.
While Stanton decided to sport the Gator threads, it came with a catch. She will redshirt her first collegiate season and take the time to learn from those who came before her.
“I really wanted to show her that she wasn't just the redshirt freshman that was coming in, she was truly going to be an important part of our team and an important part of all of our relationships,” Brown said.
Erickson’s final season with Florida will be a special one. Her third as a Gator is fresh off numerous accolades, including a unanimous All-American first-team selection and SEC Player of the Year each in 2024.
Erickson has made her mark in Gainesville, and her legacy will forever last both on and off the field, partly due to the long list of those who surrounded her.
“It's a blessing, for sure,” Erickson said. “Wearing the orange and blue is so special to me, just because of the people who have impacted me here. The people truly make the place.”
Contact Riley Orovitz at rorovitz@alligator.org. Follow her on X @rileyorovitz.
Riley is a sophomore sports journalism student in her second semester at The Alligator. She is the beat reporter for Gators Swim & Dive while also contributing to the Gators Football Beat. She previously served in the same role in her first semester with the newspaper. Riley is an avid South Florida sports fan and enjoys playing/following all sports in her free time.
