On the night of the Athletes Unlimited Softball Draft, Jadelyn Allchin sat in a Lamppost Pizza with her dad. It was the same chain pizza restaurant she would go to as a kid, following rec ball practice or for a bite to eat after playing in a softball tournament while growing up in Fountain Valley, California.
This time, surrounded by family and neighbors, she watched to see if she would be drafted to one of the AUSL’s six teams and finally be a permanent roster fixture. The league expanded from four to six teams in 2026, creating more opportunities for players to compete in the budding pro softball league.
“We’re the only people in this place because our time is four o’clock on a Monday,” Allchin laughed.
Consider it a private watch party for one of the most anticipated names to be called at the draft, but not for the typical reasons. She would have been excited to end up on any team, but it wouldn’t feel right to Allchin, the fans, and even the team’s general manager for her to wear anything but a Talons uniform.
“We go with a Talon to the core in Jadelyn Allchin,” GM Lisa Fernandez announced live from the draft room.
It was the team’s second pick in the Allocation Draft, during which they chose from a pool of over 100 athletes to add to the 2026 roster after losing players to the two new expansion clubs.
She was no longer a reserve player. Finally, Allchin will have her last name stitched onto the back of an AUSL uniform. Even sweeter, it’s in the same jersey it was Velcroed to last summer.
Status: Temporary
Competition to make it on an AUSL roster is stiff, and the inaugural season was particularly challenging. The four original teams had 16 roster spots for the 2025 season.
She had only a year of pro ball under her belt, playing in the All-Star Cup after graduating from UCLA in 2024. Allchin remembers sitting through the inaugural draft, hearing 64 names called, and accepting, “Alright, I know I’m a reserve player.”
The league created a reserve pool to help teams navigate roster gaps due to injuries or other absences. Athletes could be picked up and released back to the pool at any time, even by multiple teams over the course of the summer.
The Talons picked up Allchin from the start. On May 22, she was assigned to fill the absences of players arriving late to the season, and remained on the team because of openings left by injuries.
Over the 24-game regular season, Allchin made 17 starts and played in 21 games for the Talons. She had the best on-base percentage on the team at .482 and was second in batting average (.380) and slugging percentage (.580). Allchin became the team’s fixture in the two-hole and a stalwart in left field. She even tied for the league lead in stolen bases, reaching safely in all eight attempts.
“She’s a spark plug for us for sure,” Talons Head Coach Howard Dobson said during the season. “She does everything for us and never expects any of the glory.”
Even with some of the best numbers in the league, Allchin knew her time with the Talons would eventually expire. Athletes on the team’s injured reserve list were reactivated for the final two games of the regular season, and Allchin went back to the reserve athlete pool. But she didn’t leave the team she’d become an integral piece of. She traveled to Tuscaloosa for the AUSL Championship and watched as they won the first title in league history. By the time they were spraying champagne, Allchin was there on the field celebrating with the team she helped reach the pinnacle.
Officially a Talon
With the numbers Allchin put up in the 2025 season, it wasn’t really a matter of if a team would draft her on that Monday night as she watched in the pizza shop. It was more about which team.
“Looking back at the season, I’m still in shock. Wow, that really happened… just knowing that’s what I did,” Allchin said, reflecting on her journey and results last year. “In my head, it was always a bigger picture for next year. Everything that I’m working on, even if it’s the days that I’m not there or not on a roster at all, I’m going to find a way to keep working because it’s going to be for next year.”
Allchin was on FaceTime with former Talons teammate Tori Vidales when the draft rolled to the second round. The Talons were on the clock, and after those few words about a “Talon to the core” from Fernandez, Vidales started screaming. That’s when she knew.
“I’m officially on a team,” Allchin beamed.
For Fernandez, Allchin was always at the top of her list in the draft process. She knew she’d lose a chunk of players to the expansion teams’ selections and that her underdog left fielder would be in high demand.
“I’m a loyalist at heart,” Fernandez said. “She was committed to the Talons. How could I not have her be on this team?”
Fernandez knew that there may have been people who thought she needed to prioritize a different position, especially not an outfielder in the second round. But she wasn’t taking any chances.
“She was an integral part. When I was able to say her name, I was able to breathe, you know what I mean? I was elated… just an incredible addition.”
Now, instead of her last name Velcroed onto a Talons jersey, ‘Allchin’ will be stitched for the team’s reigning championship season. She was with them from the beginning and will carry them into the next chapter.
“It’s kind of shifted in perspective of this is now a team where I’m concreted in,” Allchin said. “I can put my heart and soul into it. I’m really glad that I got the opportunity to be with the team from the start, to see how their culture was created, and to know that I was somewhat a part of it.”
The Talons were shaken up at the draft – they lost four players from the original team to the Spark and Cascade. Allchin will be more valuable than ever; a key piece of the team’s identity who wanted to be a part of it more than anyone.
“Throughout the season, it was just riding with the highs and lows, knowing that I could be on call any day or I could be taken off the roster any day. So I’m just grateful I was able to just enjoy the days that I did have and like embrace the moments fully.”
For now, it’s a pepperoni pizza and a pound of wings to celebrate with her family.
Next up, she’ll fly again in green and gold, officially a Talon.
Savanna Collins is the Senior Reporter for the AUSL. You can follow her on X @savannaecollins.
