Taylor Edwards was inducted into the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2026 this weekend. She is one of the best players in Nebraska softball history, leading the program during her tenure from 2011 to 2014.
The former Blaze catcher’s college and professional softball career spanned over a decade.
Edwards is a two-time All-American and holds 17 program records, including two shared NCAA marks. She is tied for the most consecutive games with a home run, going yard six straight times her freshman year. She earned third-team All-America honors that season, becoming the first Husker catcher to earn All-America recognition.
In 2013, she helped lead the Huskers to the Women’s College World Series and earned All-Tournament team recognition. She was honored as the NFCA Division I Catcher of the Year in her senior season and helped Nebraska to its first Big Ten regular-season title.
After her career as a Husker, Edwards played in every recent iteration of pro softball. She was selected eighth overall in the 2014 National Pro Fastpitch Draft by the Pennsylvania Rebellion. She was a three-time champion in four NPF seasons, winning two titles with the Chicago Bandits and one with the Scrap Yard Dawgs.
She also played two seasons with Scrap Yard Fastpitch as an independent team and overseas with Team Denso-Bright Pegasus of the Japan Diamond League. Edwards competed in every Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball Championship season (now known as the All-Star Cup) and AUX competition. She is a 2022 All-Defensive Team honoree.
Defined by her quiet presence and meticulousness, Edwards experienced the grind of professional softball before it stabilized with the AUSL.
Edwards also wore red, white, and blue for Team USA for many years. She helped the team win gold at the WBSC World Championship and USA Softball International Cup. She was an alternate on the 2020 Tokyo Olympic team.
Edwards was selected in the 11th round of the AUSL Allocation Draft. She was the Blaze’s primary catcher in the team’s inaugural season. One of her proudest accomplishments is having her jersey number retired at Nebraska.
Savanna Collins is the Senior Reporter at Athletes Unlimited. You can follow her on Twitter @savannaecollins.