SAN ANTONIO – The UT Arlington softball team looks to build off its 2024 season as third-year head coach Kara Dill and company will open the 2025 season against Prairie View A&M on Friday, Feb. 7 as part of Incarnate Word's three-day tournament.
 
The Mavericks will hit the ground running with five games on the opening-weekend schedule as UTA is set to face Eastern Illinois and Incarnate Word as well. This upcoming weekend will mark the first of four preseason tournaments for the Mavs as the squad will compete in LSU's tournament (Feb. 14-16) before hosting back-to-back weekends at Allan Saxe Field for the annual Boerner Invitational (Feb. 20-23) and Maverick Invitational (Feb. 28-Mar. 1).
 
INCARNATE WORD TOURNAMENT INFO
OPPONENTS: UIW, Eastern Illinois, Prairie View A&M
WHEN: February 7-9
GAME 1: Feb. 7 | Prairie View A&M | 12:15 PM
GAME 2: Feb. 7 | UIW | 4:45 PM
GAME 3: Feb. 8 | Prairie View A&M | 10 AM
GAME 4: Feb. 8 | Eastern Illinois | 12:15 PM
GAME 5: Feb. 9 | UIW | 12:15 PM
WHERE: San Antonio, Texas | H-E-B Field
WATCH + FOLLOW: ESPN+ | Live Stats
 
UTA NOTES

• The UT Arlington softball team looks to kick off the 2025 season in San Antonio for Incarnate Word's tournament. The Mavericks are coming off a 23-34 record from last season as head coach Kara Dill returns 14 with seven freshmen and three transfers.
• UTA had a successful run in the 2024 WAC Tournament as the Mavs made it to the quarterfinals, ultimately suffering a 4-1 loss to California Baptist.
• Former Maverick Camille Corona led the Maverick lineup in multiple categories as she capped the 2024 season with a team-high .401 batting average, 67 hits, 31 runs scored, a .463 on-base percentage and nine stolen bases. Corona finished with 19 multi-hit efforts including notable performances against then No. 14 Arkansas (Feb. 23) and No. 1 Oklahoma (Mar. 20). In conference play alone, Corona ranked high in the WAC in multiple statistical batting categories which included batting average (4th, .443), on-base percentage (T-4th, .500) and hits (5th, 35).
•  Senior Jessica Adams returns as a dominant force both at the plate and in the circle as the right-handed pitcher led the pitching rotation with 114 innings pitched. With a 3.50 ERA, Adams tossed 16 complete games, four shutouts and seven wins.
• Joining Adams in the circle this season will be returners Abi Gutierrez, Emilie Hoelscher and Jade Moreno along with newcomers Kynlee Bowlin, Jaycee Knighton and Madi McDonnell.
• Marley Neises, Kaitlyn Sailor, Alaina Hampton and Nicole Hill look to make an impact for the Mavericks after playing important roles both offensively and defensively in Dill's lineup last spring.
• Transfers Dee McClarity (Texas Tech), Mia McNulty (UCLA) and Elizabeth Baylor (New Mexico) will add depth behind Dill's vision, bringing both a winning mindset and postseason experience to this year's roster.

KNOW YOUR OPPONENT | INCARNATE WORD

• The Cardinals are coming off a successful 2024 campaign, finishing 34-17 overall.
• Junior Victoria Altamarino started 51 games for the Cardinals, leading with a .444 batting average, 75 hits, 19 doubles, 52 RBI and 12 home runs.
• As a team, UIW compiled 293 runs off 448 hits.
• Sophomore Larissa Jacquez led the six-player pitching staff with a 2.46 ERA with over 122 innings pitched. The righty tossed a team-high 129 strike outs, coming away with 12 complete games and 11 wins on the season.
• Currently, the Mavericks leads the overall series record with the Cardinals, 9-1.

 
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT | EASTERN ILLINOIS

• Eastern Illinois tabbed a 40-win season in 2024, suffering 17 losses.
• Infielder Kendall Grover returns for the 2025 season after ranking at the top with the most hits (68), runs scored (47), RBI (46), batting average (.354), home runs (10), doubles (18) and stolen bases (20).
• In the circle, McKenzie Oslanzi logged a staff-low ERA of 1.70 after spending 172 innings on the mound for the Panthers. The sophomore threw 149 strike outs and 12 complete games with a 21-5 record.
• The previous meeting between the Mavericks and Panthers was last season in Youngsville, Louisiana at the Mardi Gras Mambo. UTA leads the overall series record, 3-2.

 
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT | PRAIRIE VIEW A&M

• Prairie View A&M looks to improve its overall record of 2024 after finishing 29-19.
• Biviana Figueroa was one of five players on the Panther's lineup that hit above .300 last season, ending the year with a team-high .394 batting average. The former standout tabbed the second-most hits (52), home runs (6) and RBI (39).
• As a team, PVAMU was 105-117 in stolen bases with a .298 batting average and 293 runs off 372 hits.
• Breanna Reyna ended the year with a 2.61 ERA, 102 innings pitched, five shutouts, 12 complete games and 10 wins.
• So far, UTA remains undefeated against PVAMU in the series record, 15-0.
   

ON DECK
UTA will pick back up with a six-game road stretch, beginning with a Thursday night contest at McNeese followed by LSU's three-day tournament. There, the Mavericks will face Virginia Tech, Northwestern and LSU.
 
FOLLOW THE MAVS
For the latest news on UTA Softball, log on to UTAMavs.com or stay connected to the Mavs on social media. Follow the Mavericks on Twitter @UTAMavsSB, on Instagram @UTAMavsSB and on Facebook at Facebook.com/UTAMavsSB.