- 20 Top Stars “Protected” Ahead of First-Ever AUSL Expansion Draft
- AUSL Draft to Air Live on ESPNU on Monday, December 1 at 7:00 pm ET
Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) today revealed the highly decorated and seasoned group of softball veterans that will serve as General Managers and Head Coaches of its six teams for the 2026 season, along with 20 players – five from each of the league’s original four teams – that have been protected by those clubs ahead of the AUSL Draft, next Monday, December 1, at 7 p.m. live on ESPNU.
The illustrious leadership group – which boasts among them six Olympic medals, 17 NCAA championships (as players and coaches), and 17 NCAA All-American honors – features many of the top names from across the softball landscape. Their roles with the AUSL will be in addition to their existing positions.
General Managers for the AUSL’s four original teams remain the same – including Lisa Fernandez of the 2025 AUSL Champion Talons, Jenny Dalton-Hill (Bandits), Dana Sorensen (Blaze) and Cat Osterman (Volts). The AUSL – which earlier this month welcomed the Oklahoma City Spark and Cascade as expansion teams – will also welcome Kirk Walker and Jami Lobpries as General Managers of those teams, respectively, as well as new Head Coaches Shonda Stanton (Bandits), Kara Dill (Blaze), Amber Flores (Spark) and Ricci Woodard (Volts). Talons Head Coach Howard Dobson is also returning.
The General Managers and Head Coaches will be paired as follows:
Bandits: General Manager Jenny Dalton-Hill; Head Coach Shonda Stanton
Blaze: General Manager Dana Sorensen; Head Coach Kara Dill
Cascade: General Manager Jami Lobpries; Head Coach to be announced
Spark: General Manager Kirk Walker; Head Coach Amber Flores
Talons: General Manager Lisa Fernandez; Head Coach Howard Dobson
Volts: General Manager Cat Osterman; Head Coach Ricci Woodard
The General Managers will assemble much of their rosters at the AUSL Draft, a two-part draft event, designed to support competitive balance and provide opportunity across the league. The AUSL Draft will take place on Monday, December 1, live at 7:00 pm ET on ESPNU. Veteran ESPN softball commentators Amanda Scarborough and Danielle Lawrie will provide analysis for the AUSL Draft broadcast, which will be hosted by Chuckie Kempf and include reporting from Savanna Collins.
The AUSL Draft event will lead off in its first half with an Expansion Draft, designed to help the Spark and the Cascade build a competitive foundation by selecting from unprotected players who are currently rostered with the original four AUSL teams.
The Blaze, Volts, Talons and Bandits have each protected the following five players from their 2025 rosters:
Bandits: Erin Coffel (IF), Lexi Kilfoyl (P), Taylor McQuillin (P), Skylar Wallace (IF), Morgan Zerkle (OF)
Blaze: Ana Gold (IF), Baylee Klingler (IF), Kayla Kowalik (U), Aubrey Leach (IF), Keilani Ricketts (P)
Talons: Georgina Corrick (P), Megan Faraimo (P), Hannah Flippen (IF), Montana Fouts (P), Sharlize Palacios (C)
Volts: Rachel Garcia (P), Amanda Lorenz (OF), Tiare Jennings (OF), Dejah Mulipola (C), Mia Scott (U)
In the Expansion Draft, the Spark and Cascade can each select up to eight players from the unprotected player pool (featuring some of the sport’s biggest stars, including Odicci Alexander-Bennett, Maya Brady, Michaela Edenfield, Bri Ellis, Sam Landry, Sydney McKinney, Bubba Nickles-Camarena and Aleshia Ocasio among others). The original four teams will protect another player for every subsequent round after the fifth.
The Allocation Draft will follow, providing opportunities for all six teams to select players who opt in for AUSL consideration, including athletes from the 2025 Reserve Pool and professional players from other independent teams and leagues around the world (including players who previously played for the Spark).
More details on the AUSL Draft structure can be found HERE.
In the spring, the remaining roster spots for each team will be filled by draft-eligible NCAA athletes who have been drafted in the AUSL College Draft. Golden Tickets will be delivered to these drafted players.
GENERAL MANAGERS:
- Lisa Fernandez (Talons): One of the most recognizable names in the history of softball, Fernandez assembled the Talons roster that won the inaugural AUSL Championship in 2025 and led the league with an 18-6 record in the regular season. She is also the Associate Head Softball Coach at UCLA, entering her 28th season on the Bruins’ coaching staff. In her 26 seasons at her alma mater, the Bruins have posted a 1,267-272-2 (.823) record and have claimed five NCAA championships (1999, 2003, 2004, 2010 and 2019). A three-time Olympic gold medal winner for Team USA (1996, 2000 and 2004), Fernandez posted a 0.33 ERA in the 1996 Olympics and earned the save in the United States’ gold medal victory over China during the sport’s inaugural appearance in the Olympics. One of the sport’s greatest college players, Fernandez was a two-time national champion and four-time First-Team All-American while starring for the Bruins from 1990-93.
- Jenny Dalton-Hill (Bandits): Dalton-Hill’s Bandits reached the AUSL Championship in 2025 and finished second in the league with a 15-9 regular season record. A three-time College Softball World Series champion with the Arizona Wildcats (1993, 94 & 96), Dalton-Hill was the first college softball player ever to hit .400 with 50 home runs, 200 RBIs and a .800 slugging percentage in a career, was a three time first team All-American, and the Pac-10 Player of the Year, the Women’s College World Series Most Outstanding Player and National Player of the year as a senior. A softball analyst for ESPN, Dalton-Hill played for Team USA during college and also played for the USA Baseball women’s national team after college, earning a bronze medal at the 2010 Women’s Baseball World Cup.
- Cat Osterman (Volts): A three-time Olympian and four-time All-American, Osterman pitched for Team USA from 2001 to 2010 and from 2019-2021, and competed in the 2004, 2008 and 2020 Olympics, earning a gold medal in 2004. She earned four National Pro Fastpitch titles and was named Championship MVP three times. A native of Houston and a University of Texas standout, Osterman led the Longhorns to three Women’s College World Series appearances in 2003, 2005 and 2006. She also became the only person to win USA Softball’s National Player of the Year honors three times. Osterman was the champion of Athletes Unlimited’s inaugural softball season in 2020 and finished her professional career with Athletes Unlimited in 2021 before joining the AU Advisory Board in 2023.
- Dana Sorensen (Blaze): A former Stanford pitching standout, Sorensen was a three-time NFCA All-American who played in two College Softball World Series and was inducted into the Stanford Athletics Hall of Fame. While competing in the NPF, she pursued her Master’s Degree in Sports Administration from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Dana went on to spend three seasons as an assistant coach and Physical Education Instructor at UC Davis in addition to two years as an assistant softball coach at Oregon State. More recently, she returned to her hometown of San Diego to pursue her passion for training and human performance, eventually opening her own pitching instruction and sports performance training business, Sorensen Elite Softball Pitching LLC. In addition to running Sorensen Elite Softball Pitching LLC, Dana currently also works alongside Nate Walker and Diamond Solutions to provide pitching data and analytics strategies for collegiate softball programs.
- Jami Lobpries (Cascade): Lobpries brings a versatile skill set to the AUSL, having served as the CEO of The Alliance Fastpitch, an organization that supports the growth of youth softball, since its founding in 2020. She played professionally in the National Professional Fastpitch (NPF) league from 2009-12. While in the NPF, she played for the Philadelphia Force (2009), TN Diamonds (2010), NPF Diamonds (2011) and the Carolina Diamonds (2012). Prior to her current role, she served as an assistant coach for two seasons at Monmouth University in New Jersey. In her final season with the Hawks, she helped the team to its second 30-win season across four years. She played collegiately at Texas A&M, where she helped the Aggies to four straight NCAA Tournaments, including a national runner-up finish in 2008.
- Kirk Walker (Spark): Bringing more than 40 years of collegiate experience to the AUSL, Walker has helped both Oregon State and UCLA remain among some of the best collegiate programs in the country. Walker began coaching Oregon State in 1995. Across 18 seasons, he guided the Beavers to 10 NCAA Tournament appearances, including the program’s first-ever trip to the Women’s College World Series (WCWS) in 2006. He is the winningest coach in Oregon State Softball history. With UCLA, he played an integral role in leading the Bruins to six WCWS titles from 1984-94. During his second stint with the program, from 2013-24, he helped the Bruins to the 2019 WCWS title. In 2025, he served on the coaching staff of the Talons, helping lead the club to the inaugural AUSL Championship.
HEAD COACHES
- Kara Dill (Blaze): The Blaze’s Associate Head Coach in 2025, Dill is no stranger to coaching in the professional ranks, as she coached in the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) league during the 2016 season. She enters her fourth season as head coach of the University of Texas-Arlington (UTA). Under her direction, the Mavericks have seen an increase in win total year-over-year since the 2023 season. In her short time so far with the program, Dill has coached multiple All-WAC selections, as well as an NFCA All-South Region honoree, in the 2024 season. Prior coaching stops include Texas A&M, LSU and her alma mater, the University of Kentucky. In six seasons with the Aggies, she led the pitching staff to new levels, including helping the team to the Women’s College World Series (WCWS) in 2017. Dill spent two seasons at LSU and helped the Tigers to back-to-back WCWS appearances, for the first time in program history. After an illustrious career with the Wildcats that saw her earn All-SEC honors, Dill returned to the Bluegrass State and guided Kentucky to its first-ever WCWS appearance in 2014.
- Howard Dobson (Talons): Dobson returns to the Talons after leading the club to the inaugural AUSL Championship in 2025 and a league-leading 18-6 record in the regular season. Dobson spent 13 seasons as an assistant coach at LSU, most recently as the program’s hitting coach. During his time with the Tigers, the program saw its offensive numbers surge to new heights with 15 individual single-season records, 10 individual career records, along with 16 offensive season records broken. Dobson’s hitters at LSU have collected 13 All-American awards, 12 All-SEC First Team honors, and 14 All-SEC Second Team honors. Dobson was heavily involved with USA Softball from 2012-2021 and helped coach Team USA to a WBSC World Championship in 2020 with a 7-6 walk-off win, securing a spot for Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics, where they went on to win the silver medal. Previously, Dobson spent four seasons as the head coach of Southern Miss (2008-11) and five seasons as an assistant coach at Oklahoma (2003-07).
- Amber Flores (Spark): Flores brings an established history from the Sooner State, as she has served in her current role with the Spark since 2023. Flores played professionally in the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) league, making her debut in 2010. Before her move to the professional coaching ranks, Flores served as head coach of Seminole State College of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). In her 13-year tenure, Flores amassed a record of 510-107 (.826) while coaching 22 NJCAA All-Americans and 72 All-Region players. She guided the Trojans to six Region 2 NJCAA Tournament titles, as well as six NJCAA Softball National Tournament appearances. She was a six-time Region 2 Softball Coach of the Year honoree and was named 2021 NJCAA Region 2 Coach of the Year. Flores began her head coaching career at Stony Brook University, where she led the Seawolves to a 36-win season in 2012. At Oklahoma, she was a three-time NFCA All-American and helped the Sooners to three NCAA Super Regionals appearances.
- Shonda Stanton (Bandits): Stanton enters her ninth year as head coach of Indiana University, where she has taken the Hoosiers to three straight NCAA Tournaments, the first such instance in program history. Prior stops include IU Indianapolis (formerly IUPUI) and Marshall. During her lone season with IU Indianapolis, she ushered the Jaguars into NCAA Division I level, leading the program to its first-ever winning season at the highest level of collegiate athletics. Across 17 seasons with Marshall, Stanton led the Thundering Herd to historic new heights, qualifying for the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament in 2013. As head coach, she had three players earn NFCA All-American honors, including AUSL veteran and Bandits outfielder, Morgan Zerkle. In her four-year career at UNC Greensboro, she helped lead the Spartans to two Big South Conference titles.
- Ricci Woodard (Volts): Woodard has quickly become one of the most well-respected coaches across the entire NCAA Division I level. Entering her 26th season at the helm of Texas State, she has amassed a record of 878-521-2 (.627) while coaching 102 all-conference selections, 35 all-region honorees and six NFCA All-Americans. Under her guidance, the Bobcats have collected 14 conference championships, eight regular season titles and six conference tournament titles in both the Southland Conference and Sun Belt Conference, respectively, while appearing in 11 NCAA Tournaments. In addition, Woodard is a five-time coach of the year honoree. Prior to her illustrious coaching career at Texas State, she helped lead the University of Oregon to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances as an assistant coach. She played collegiately at Central Arizona Junior College and New Mexico State.
Additional information about the upcoming AUSL season, including home cities for the Bandits, Blaze, Cascade, Talons and Volts as well as the game schedule and other details, will be announced in the coming months. For more information, follow @theauslofficial and visit theausl.com.
