A friend, especially a best friend, knows you better than anyone.
They’re a trusted confidante, embrace your quirks, and share life’s highs and lows. That is who Texas Softball catcher Reese Atwood is to her pitchers – on and off the field.
Atwood has been the starter behind the dish for the Longhorns since her freshman year in 2023, working with All-American arms and staffs that led the team to the Women’s College World Series twice, winning it all last season.
The catcher has offensive capabilities that make a lot of noise – breaking program records in RBIs and home runs as a dominant power hitter – but Atwood is actually quieter than most, likes to listen, and is always observing. She recently signed a name, image, and likeness (NIL) deal with the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL), becoming the second college softball player to sign a partnership deal with the league.
Four years in on the last run of her college career, Atwood is the total package.
From South Texas Farm to All-American Catcher
Atwood remembers lining up with her rec softball teammates as a kid so the coach could see who threw the farthest; she had the strongest arm. That was when she became a catcher. Once she reached middle school, Atwood started working with a catching coach. Even then, she was always one of the tallest players on her team.
“I didn’t have quick movements, so that’s something that [my] coach really worked with me hard on. I had a strong arm, but I couldn’t really throw anybody out because my legs were so slow under my feet,” Atwood said.
Long and lanky, Atwood trained her coordination and grew into an athlete. She now stands at an even six feet, not necessarily an anomaly, but taller than most catchers. Her arm strength has only gotten better, but it’s now paired with elite agility.
Just this week, Atwood stunned a runner on third. She popped up and framed her body to throw to second, but instead, no-look zinged it down the line to pick off the lead runner.
The situation had runners on the corners with two outs against in-state rival Texas A&M, and it helped freshman pitcher Hannah Wells get out of the inning. Sounds like the kind of friend we all could use – one that helps us when we’re in a tough spot.
Atwood grew up on a farm in Sandia, Texas, a small town near Corpus Christi, playing local ball most of her youth and not traveling much outside of South Texas. She was recruited by some junior colleges in high school, but her dad, Geoff, believed she could play at a higher level. She joined a national travel ball team out of Houston called the Hotshots.
“I sat on the bench. I was probably a third-string catcher. And honestly, the bench is your biggest coach,” Atwood said. “I learned where I needed to be better… that I had to work a lot harder than I was to be able to accomplish dreams.”
Her days got longer as she started going to hitting and catching lessons daily. The turning point came late that summer in a Premier Girls Fastpitch national tournament. It was a tight game, and when Atwood finally got her chance, she was ready.
“We ended up losing, but it opened up so many more opportunities for me, and I was able to get on a younger team within my organization. From there on, Coach [Nathan Nelson] really pushed me and helped me to grow and get better.”
Atwood was the starter on her travel ball team from then on. Texas was the first major Division I softball program to show interest in her, and she would need to be ready for the next opportunity to lead the pitching staff and start as a freshman.
Building a Championship Battery
Atwood came into the Longhorn program as a shy first-year player. Where there used to be nerves, she’s now calm under pressure. She knows her staff inside and out. Like Teagan Kavan, who she often reminds to breathe through big moments. Cambria Salmon, on the other hand, Atwood will talk up and take a more aggressive approach with.
“There have been very few times when I call a time-out, and I go out there and say something hard,” Atwood explained. “They have coaches that tell them where they need to be better. I try to remind them of the gratitude that we’re in this position or talk through things that get their mental side back on track instead of the pitching side.”
Much of Atwood’s time in Austin has been spent with her battery-mates. She knows and cares about them beyond their contributions to the team. That was evident in a recent interview with NCAA Softball, where Kavan and Atwood recalled Kavan’s complete-game performance against Oklahoma at the WCWS despite having a heavy heart.
Hours before the game, Kavan’s grandmother passed away. The two were close; Kavan wears No. 17 in honor of her grandmother, who was born on Nov. 17, 1928.
Kavan remembers Atwood telling her, “I choose you every day. I don’t care about the circumstances.”
“I was worried that morning that there was going to be doubt that I couldn’t compete to my full potential, and I shared that with Reese,” Kavan said in the interview. Atwood told her, “This team trusts you, and this team knows what you’re capable of, that you’re gonna give us your all no matter what.”
That confidence reaffirmed, and love from Atwood and her teammates was what Kavan needed to seal the 4-2 victory to advance to the semifinals, and the first time the Longhorns beat the Sooners at the WCWS.
“I love her as a player, I love her as a person as well, so it’s just such a great experience in the way that we’ll be able to share 20 years from now,” Atwood said.
Mastering the Art of Framing
While Atwood is in tune with her pitches, she’s always tuning herself up. She doesn’t become the NFCA Catcher of the Year or a Johnny Bench Award winner without first-class technique. Of all responsibilities of a catcher: communicating to the field, managing the staff, checking runners, and more, it’s the small movements – framing – that Atwood really loves.
“I think that’s actually my favorite part of being a catcher, being able to steal strikes,” she said.
She worked to smooth her glove motions by bouncing a tennis ball off the wall to perfect her framing, to have no hitches, and come naturally in a game. It doesn’t show up in the stats, but its impact is felt over seven innings.
“You have a top hitter up with runners in scoring position, and you steal a strike… one hit changes the outcome of a game, so I take so much pride in my framing.”
All the while, she’s managing what goes on between her own ears in her final run with the Longhorns. Texas sits at the top of the rankings with a 31-2 record and expectations to repeat success. Atwood is more confident than ever and feels like she’s pulsing with energy. This senior version of herself – poised, assured, and trusted by her teammates – has a different outlook that makes her the best she’s ever been.
“I have so many more aspects of the game that don’t necessarily show until you’re in the postseason in a tight game. And then that’s when those things matter,” she said. “I feel like people might not necessarily see things like that, but it’s so important for an athlete to have skills that are locked away for the big moment.”
She has had one big moment already. Atwood, along with teammate Leighann Goode, was handed a Golden Ticket during the Longhorns’ series against Texas A&M, signifying their selection in the 2026 AUSL College Draft.
New pitchers to learn and friendships to kindle are on the horizon.
But she’s not done being the Longhorn’s catcher and best friend yet.
Savanna Collins is the Senior Reporter for the AUSL. You can follow her on Instagram @savvyco.
