The regular season has concluded, and now it’s time for what every player dreams about when attending the University of Florida: the postseason. Ahead of UF’s push in the NCAA Softball Tournament, sophomore Taylor Shumaker reflected on the opportunity.
“It’s what every little girl dreams of — getting to play in the postseason in college softball,” she said.
For the Gators, it's the 19th postseason under head coach Tim Walton, and he wants the focus this weekend to be strictly on his team.
“To me, it’s about the Gators,” Walton said. “I’m not excited about playing anybody specific. I just want to play ball, so the name of the team has no bearing on me. It could be the defending national champion.”
The Gators’ opening bout in the Regional will be a date with the Southwestern Athletic Conference Champions, the Florida A&M Rattlers (32-20, 19-5 SWAC). FAMU entered as the No. 4 seed, and head coach Brittany Beall was unwavering about her confidence in her roster on WRUF’s “Sportscene” with Steve Russell on Tuesday.
“We’re going to shock the world,” Beall said
The Rattlers have a two-headed snake in the circle: the duo of junior Zoryana Hughes and graduate transfer Samantha Smith. In the SWAC Tournament last weekend, Hughes hurled 16.2 innings across three appearances, surrendering three earned runs while striking out 14 batters.
She and freshman outfielder Sakiya Merriex return to the Gainesville area after attending Columbia High School in Lake City, Florida.
Smith is an everyday player and has logged 101.2 innings in the circle while posting a .271 batting average, the fourth-highest mark on the team. Her complete-game performance in the SWAC Championship earned her tournament MVP honors.
By far, the determining factor if the Rattlers hope to defeat the Gators for the first time in program history will be the performance of SWAC Player of the Year Amari Brown. The senior utility player leads FAMU in both hits (67) and home runs (10). Like Smith, she also contributed in the circle, hurling 48.1 innings this season.
A familiar face enters the Gainesville Regional for the second consecutive season: the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
After losing to Florida twice during the regular season, the Yellow Jackets struggled in ACC play, finishing with a 10-14 conference record. However, a late-season series victory over Virginia Tech helped Georgia Tech sneak into the tournament as one of the last four teams.
The Ramblin’ Wreck are led offensively by a pair of sophomores: outfielder Alyssa Willer and infielder Gracyn Tucker. Both have started every game this season, each recording more than 55 RBIs while slugging over .700.
If things finish chalk in the opening round of the Regional, it means the Gators will have their first ever meeting with the Texas State Bobcats.
The Bobcats enter the regional as an at-large selection out of the Sun Belt Conference. A major factor in earning their bid was their success during nonconference play, which included wins over Clemson, No. 12 national seed Texas Tech and No. 15 national seed Texas A&M.
Like Florida, Texas State has its own workhorse in the circle in junior left-hander Madison Azua. In 2025, Azua earned first-team All-Sun Belt honors and picked up right where she left off this season.
Azua has logged 231.2 innings pitched, the second-highest total in the country, while holding a sub-2.00 ERA. She has also delivered in marquee matchups, tossing complete-game shutouts in victories over Clemson and Texas Tech.
Offensively, senior outfielder Keely Williams leads the charge. During conference play, she batted .392 and recorded 10 doubles.
Regional play kicks off Friday morning when Florida faces Florida A&M at 11 a.m., followed by Texas State versus Georgia Tech at 1:30 p.m.
Contact Zach Moore at zmoore@alligator.org. Follow him on X @zach_moore27.
Zach is a sophomore sports journalism student in his first semester at The Alligator, covering softball. He also has experience as an intern in the Florida Collegiate Summer League. Zach enjoys watching sports in his free time, primarily the Minnesota Vikings, Orlando Magic, and Arsenal FC.
