Due to a wintry forecast for this weekend, the Francis Marion University softball team will now open its 2026 season on Friday (Jan. 30) when the nationally ranked Patriots host Newberry College for a doubleheader at 1 p.m. on the FMU Softball Field.

FMU was to have opened against USC Aiken on Sunday, but that twinbill has been postponed.

Admission for home contests at the Griffin Athletic Complex is $10 for adults and $5 for students with FMU students being admitted free with identification.

Francis Marion is ranked 10th in the 2026 pre-season National Fast-Pitch Coaches Association (NFCA)/GoRout NCAA Division II Top 25 coaches poll and the Patriots are the unanimous preseason favorite to capture the Conference Carolinas title this season.

This season's 52-game slate includes 30 home contests and a 28-game conference schedule.

Long-time FMU head coach Stacey Vallee returns 15 letterwinners, including seven position starters and two starting pitchers, from last year's history-making 53-6 squad.  FMU set a program record for most wins and captured its third consecutive Conference Carolinas Tournament championship.  Francis Marion also advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the fourth straight year, serving as host for both the sub-regional and Super Regional rounds.

The Patriots earned the Southeast Region's No. 1 overall seed and reached the Super Regional round by sweeping the sub-regional with three consecutive shutouts.

"We are ready and excited to start the season," Vallee said.  "The squad is prepared, tactically and mentally, and is eager to get started.  They understand the direction we need to go and have put in the work to get there.

"Our strength is obviously our experience, and that will allow the players to navigate the highs and lows of a season.  The returnees have shared that knowledge with the newcomers, explaining how to get through it and how to overcome adversity whatever form it may take.

"Even given our track record, there are always areas to improve.  We want to push the players to the highest level, while also retaining a healthy environment.  Yes, we have a target on our back, but the players have earned that and they embrace it.  We want them to play with swagger, but to be humble and play with confidence."

Three All-Americans return for their final season:  left-handed pitcher Alyssa Poston, outfielder Paige Strickland, and shortstop Madalyn White.  Poston, a Hartsville native, is 56-8 in two seasons as a Patriot and was named the Conference Carolinas Pitcher of the Year for both 2024 and 2025.  Strickland batted .423 last season with 14 home runs and a school-record 84 runs batted in en route to earning conference Player of the Year accolades.  She led the country in RBIs per game (1.45).  White batted .488 and led Division II in total hits (school-record 102) and ranked second in runs scored (school-record 78).

Also returning is senior right-handed pitcher Jenna Walling, who owns a 57-10 career mark in the circle, and was 20-3 with a 1.88 ERA last season.  Other positions starters back are senior outfielder Anderson Thrower (.407 avg., 23 RBIs), senior first baseman Tallulah Civoniceva (.264, 8 HRs, 30 RBIs), senior second baseman Rylie Webster (.238, 7 HRs, 23 RBIs), senior designated player and catcher Kendal Miller (.362, 5 HRs, 43 RBIs), and sophomore catcher Rylee Gray (254, 1 HR, 25 RBIs).

Other players back from the 2025 squad are senior utility player Maddy Golka, sophomore infielder Reese Miller, sophomore utility player Neilah Browne, sophomore first baseman Kelsey Day, and sophomore outfielder Sydney Weaver.

"We have a good mix in the pitching circle — two lefties and three righties — all who are different with varying speeds," Vallee said.  "We have our two returning pitchers, one (Poston) an All-American and one (Walling) that should have been an All-American.  One advantage to our pitching side is that they will be backed up by a solid defense.  The newcomers joining Poston and Walling are freshman right-handers Reese Watson and Laini Kosinski and freshman southpaw Giana Mirenda.

"Behind the plate, I feel we have a trio of solid relievers:  Kendal Miller, Gray, and junior transfer Rachel Little.   Both Miller and Gray saw time behind the plate last year and Little was a two-year starter at Division III Utica University, including batting .486 last season with 34 RBIs.

"In addition to the three returnees we have in the infield, a group of five will be battling for the starting spot at third base, and for additional time around the horn.  They are battling hard, and we are anxious to see who steps up and grabs it, even if that battle moves into the regular season before being decided.

"In the outfield, Strickland and Thrower return as starters, but senior Mikaela Goss is back and she was a starter in 2004 and saw considerable time last season.  Defensively, she is our best glove in the outfield.  Strickland looks ready to replicate her success of last season and has been hitting the ball well and running the bases confidently.  Junior college transfer McKenzie Jewell joins that group and will vie for a starting nod.  She is even-keeled mentality and adds power to the group. Last year, she hit .319 while slugging 17 home runs and driving in 49 runs at Santa Fe State College.

Other newcomers on the 2026 roster include junior infielder Riley Davis (a transfer from Wingate University), freshman utility player Lainey Amaker, and freshman outfielder Claire Neely.

Over the past four seasons, Francis Marion has averaged 44 victories a year.  Vallee owns a 653-379-1 coaching mark in 21 seasons on the Patriot bench.