Now that the AUSL Inaugural Draft is complete, it’s time for some review.
Although these athletes won’t take the field until June, there are plenty of resumes to predict the impact they could make on their squads. Considering where the athletes were selected and the impact they could have during the 2025 season, here are four steals from the draft.
Pick 19, Round 5: Maya Brady
The Talons selected UCLA star Maya Brady with their fifth overall pick. Brady will not only be a first-year player in the Athletes Unlimited organization, but the 2025 season will be her pro debut despite graduating in the spring of 2024. Brady’s college stats speak for themselves; the three-time First-Team All-American finished her career as a Bruin with a career batting average of .384 and a .464 on-base percentage. Her 71 home runs and 246 RBIs are second in UCLA history.
What makes Brady have high potential in her first pro season is how she’s performed on the international stage with Team USA. She’s competed with the team since 2022 and most recently hit .375 (6-for-16) at the 2024 WBSC World Cup. She was clutch with two doubles, five RBIs, and only two strikeouts.
Something that made the Talons’ draft strategy interesting was that they were the only team that took an athlete from the utility position in Brady and Sahvanna Jaquish. Brady can play any position in the outfield and was a shortstop for the Bruins. She creates flexibility in the lineup and as teams manage load within a three-game series, that will be valuable.
Brady’s star power paired with two other Bruins on the Talons (Megan Faraimo and Sharlize Palacios) will attract their alma mater as supporters of the newly formed team.
Pick 32, Round 8: Tori Vidales
Getting a pick like Tori Vidales at the end of the eighth round was another huge steal for the Talons. Corner infielders weren’t in high demand until that round (only Jessi Warren was selected in the fourth round by the Volts). Vidales primarily plays first base and is an incredibly consistent hitter. In her seven seasons, including the All-Star Cup (formerly Championship Season) and AUX, she hasn’t posted a “down” year statistically. She’s only hit below .300 once and reversely has had a slugging percentage above .600 five times – it was as high as .844 in the 2022 Championship Season. Vidales can hit for contact or power and with great eyes, can cause fits for pitchers through extended at-bats.
The intangibles Vidales brings to a team should not be understated. She’s a fantastic communicator with other hitters on her team, helping them pick apart pitches, and also someone who keeps a team light; watch any second baseman playing next to Vidales and they are laughing. As these teams look to gel in year one Vidales is a key part of the glue.
Pick 33, Round 9: Sydney McKinney
We’ve seen the start of Sydney McKinney’s pro career, proving she can be a valuable piece of a lineup. McKinney was at the top of the 2023 College Draft Class and has showcased how she shattered one Wichita State record after the other. Her 34-game hitting streak was the sixth-longest in NCAA Softball history.
McKinney has recorded a .365 batting average and .409 on-base percentage in her two years as a pro. Often at the top of the lineup, McKinney can bunt, slap, and hit for contact while utilizing her speed. She also has a low career strikeout rate (12%). In 2024, she had only three K’s in 47 at-bats.
Not to mention, McKinney will single-handedly give the Bandits homefield advantage anytime they play in Wichita.
Pick 46, Round 12: Bella Dayton
Selected in the final round was Texas alum Bella Dayton. The outfielder position was hefty with 17 athletes who declared themselves eligible. The Bandits scooped up Dayton with their last pick.
What’s known about Dayton from her college career is that her numbers progressively climb. She went from hitting .221 her redshirt freshman year at Arizona to .378 her senior season as a Longhorn. Her slugging percentage jumped as high as .537 as she developed a propensity for picking up extra bases (six doubles, five triples). Dayton brings some serious speed to a lineup and basepath (she successfully stole 14 bases in 15 attempts in 2024).
What’s unknown about Dayton is how she’ll adjust to the pro level in the U.S. although her numbers in international competition are promising. Dayton competed with Team Italy at the 2024 WBSC World Cup last summer and had the fourth-best average of the tournament (.500, 9-for-18) with a double, two triples, and a leading six runs scored.
She could be a sleeper pick that turns into the breakout pick of the draft.
The AUSL is a professional women’s softball league featuring four teams playing in a traditional format. The league will begin play this summer.
Savanna Collins is the Senior Reporter at Athletes Unlimited. You can follow her on Twitter @savannaecollins.
