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Texas Tech softball reloaded its WCWS roster through the transfer portal. Here's how
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- Texas Tech softball reloaded its WCWS roster through the transfer portal. Here's how
No. 11 Texas Tech softball is looking to reach the Women's College World Series for the second time ever — and second consecutive season — in the 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament. A stiff opponent awaits on the road to Oklahoma City, though.
The Red Raiders, despite their talented roster led by ace NiJaree Canady, must face No. 6 Florida in the Gainesville Super Regional . Texas Tech has a 55-6 record this season, but fell out of Super Regional host contention due to its weaker RPI and strength of schedule metrics.
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REQUIRED READING: Texas Tech softball shows a bit of everything en route to Lubbock Regional title
Of course, Texas Tech has a roster capable of winning a national championship: The Red Raiders went to work in the transfer portal last offseason, adding several of the best available players available after falling to Texas in the national championship series in 2025. With Canady returning, Texas Tech was even ranked No. 1 in the preseason polls.
Will that investment into the transfer portal ultimately work out?
Here's a look at Texas Tech built its roster for its NCAA Tournament run this season:
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Texas Tech softball's transfer portal class in 2026
Texas Tech and second-year coach Gerry Glasco have built their roster through the transfer portal, with 15 of their 23 roster spots coming from players who played at another school last year. Seven of those players were added ahead of this season and are playing substantial roles in the lineup.
The Red Raiders added two five-star transfer portal recruits in former UCLA pitcher Kaitlyn Terry and former Tennessee infielder Taylor Pannell, along with fellow top-10 ranked transfers Jazzy Burns (Ohio State) and Mia Williams (Florida). Desirae Spearman from New Mexico State is also an everyday starter for Texas Tech, and Lagi Quiroga from California has been solid in a part-time role for the squad.
Even Jackie Lis, an under-the-radar transfer from Southern Illinois, has emerged as one of the team's best hitters, ranking second in batting average (.445) and second in home runs (18) on the team while leading in slugging (.925).
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In fact, only three players on the roster who started their careers at Texas Tech — starting shortstop Hailey Toney, pitcher Samantha Lincoln and outfielder Logan Halleman — even made starts this season. Toney has started 55 games, Lincoln has 12 and Halleman has 10.
REQUIRED READING: NiJaree Canady's last ride: Texas Tech's million-dollar ace has final shot at title
Glasco, formerly the coach at Louisiana-Lafayette, also brought multiple players from the school with him to Lubbock prior to the 2025 season. Starters Lauren Allred and Mihyia Davis are still on the team, and depth options Chloe Riassetto and Victoria Valdez are, too.
How Kaitlyn Terry has relieved NiJaree Canady
Terry has arguably been Texas Tech's best addition so far this season. The two-way star has most importantly been a top arm that Glasco can turn to that isn't Canady, the two-time National Player of the Year. The latter threw a staggering 520 pitches in last year's WCWS.
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Due to Terry's addition, Canady has cut down her innings total from 240 in 2025 to 152 1/3 innings in 2026. Texas Tech is hoping to keep Canady fresh for its latest NCAA Softball Tournament run.
Suffice to say, Texas Tech has built quite the roster from the transfer portal. The new kid on the block in college softball made its first Super Regional appearance and WCWS appearance in 2025, and doesn't appear to be going away anytime soon.
Texas Tech softball stats
Here's a look at each addition this season and their stats:
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P/DP Kaitlyn Terry:.470 batting average with 10 home runs and 55 RBIs; 1.39 ERA with 152 strikeouts across 126 1/3 innings pitched.
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UTIL Jackie Lis:.445 batting average with 18 home runs and 66 RBIs
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2B Mia Williams:.435 batting average with 22 home runs and 77 RBIs
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C Jasmyn Burns:.386 batting average with 17 home runs and 56 RBIs
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3B Taylor Pannell:.360 batting average with 10 home runs and 53 RBIs
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P/OF Desirae Spearman:.330 batting average with 13 home runs and 48 RBIs; 3.0 ERA with five strikeouts across 4 2/3 innings pitched
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C Lagi Quiroga:.375 batting average with 11 home runs and 31 RBIs
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How Texas Tech softball used transfer portal to reload WCWS roster
