USF softball looks to reclaim their CCAC crown

One of the fastest rising sports in the United States, softball has had no shortage of success here at the University of St. Francis (USF). They have finished as a top two team in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) the last three seasons, including winning the conference title in 2023 and 2024. Finishing behind St. Xavier University last season under rookie head coach Alyssa Moreno, she will look to lead the team to their first NAIA tournament under her direction, a tournament she played in four times as a player at USF. 

The team faces a huge loss on the field in pitcher Kiersten Manning, who won five CCAC pitcher of the week awards in her two years at USF. Although she won’t be in the circle, she joins the coaching staff in the dugout as a graduate assistant for the season. Taking over for her will be junior Emily Boyle. A two-way player, Boyle has hit over .300 her first two seasons at USF while also appearing in 24 games behind Manning last season. 

As the longest tenured pitcher at USF, Boyle has been able to work with Manning over the last couple seasons. Boyle talked about how much of an impact this has had on her pitching. 

“[Manning] helped me out a lot last year. Even as my coach, she set me up to help lead the pitchers on the team,” Boyle said. “I feel like I still have that leadership because she is our graduate assistant now. I feel like she’s always in our corner, so that's nice.”

Coach Moreno brought in two transfer students along with Morgan Smardo, who was on the team last season, to round out the pitching staff. A big part of the recruitment process has been bringing in transfers for the team, as only two freshmen are rostered for the season. Boyle thinks that these transfers that were brought in will help shape the identity of the team this season. 

“We have a lot of new transfers and we have a lot of good power hitters,” Boyle said. “I feel like that will definitely help us within our lineup. I feel like our team gels so much better than it did in our previous years.” 

One change to their CCAC schedule this season will be the amount of games played, with it increasing from two games to three against each team. Now, depth and bench roles will play a bigger part during the season as opposed to in years past. Boyle spoke about how important this will be to the team. 

“We’re going to need more pitching and more variety, more people are probably going to get injured because it’s a longer season,” Boyle said. “Just having everyone ready will definitely help contribute to winning”

While there is depth within the team, much of their star power will be returning for the 2026 season. Four of the five members of the team who were all conference team members last season are headlining the lineup, including all three women who made the first team. Emily Hurst, who earned first team honors while also leading the team in almost every single offensive statistic, returns to play shortstop once again. Hailing from the Netherlands, Rose Mwaro also returns as a graduate student after being a part of the first team. Kylie Cook, the youngest of the bunch as a junior, earned her first conference selection last season and will join Hurst on the left side of the infield. Jaelynn Taylor, a CCAC second team pick, also returns behind the plate as well. 

Boyle’s identity for the season this year was a simple one. 

“I just want to be champions,” Boyle said. “I feel like we have so much potential compared to our previous years. Especially with [Coach Moreno] having a year under her belt now, I just feel like we can dominate”

The women will open their season on Feb. 12 against Cornerstone University, and their non-conference play is highlighted by their spring break trip to Florida where they will play 12 games. Their conference schedule will begin after that on March 24th at home against Calumet College of St. Joseph.