HUNTSVILLE, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi softball program will initiate the 2025 season this weekend with five games, competing in Sam Houston's Bearkat Classic Thursday through Saturday at the Bearkat Softball Complex.
The Islanders will officially get underway on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. against New Mexico. The next two days will both feature a pair of games for A&M-Corpus Christi, who will face Tulsa and Bryant back-to-back on Friday at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., respectively, before rematching Bryant Saturday at 1 p.m. followed by their tournament conclusion against Sam Houston at 6 p.m.
The Islanders are coming off a 2024 season that saw a 21-22 overall record and 9-15 conference slate. Since head coach
Kathleen Rodriguez took over at the helm in 2022, the Islanders have made the conference tournament each of the last three seasons before then they hadn't appeared in since 2015.
This year's squad is evenly split between returners and newcomers at 13 each but the underclassmen hold a slight 14-12 edge on the 26-man roster. The Islanders will have just four senior veterans grace the field this season, including
Paolina Baez,
Monee Montilla, and
Siarah Galvan who have spent all four years on the Island.
Montilla notably returns for her final season, having been named a Southland Conference Preseason First-Team selection ahead of the new year. She was the top-hitter for the Islanders in 2024 with a .340 batting average. She led the team in doubles (11), OPS (.958), walks (18) and on-base percentage (.443) as well as ranking top-10 in the league in batting average, doubles, OBP, and OPS. In the field, she accumulated a .986 fielding percentage with 208 putouts to also finish top-10 in the defensive category.
Baez ended top-six on the team last year in hits (25), runs (16), and RBIs (16) while junior
Crystal Davila also returns as a threat at the plate with 18 hits and 13 RBIs last season.
In the circle, the Islanders will see the familiar faces of Galvan, an All-Conference Third Team selection her freshman year, junior
Malia Williams and sophomore
Kendra Winfrey. The three combined to throw over 60 innings in 2024 and only allow 23 earned runs.
It will be the first time since 2022 that the Islanders will have faced any of this weekend's opponent. They last saw Tulsa that year as the Golden Hurricanes lead the all-time series 4-0. The Islanders last played Sam Houston in a three-game series in 2021 which they won 2-1. The last time they faced New Mexico was in 2005 when they won 7-6. It will be the first ever meeting between them and Bryant.
Thursday, Feb. 6
Game 1 // A&M-Corpus Christi vs. New Mexico
Time: 2:30 p.m. CT
Live Stats
Socials: @IslandersSball
Friday, Feb. 7
Game 2 // A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Tulsa
Time: 11:30 a.m. CT
Live Stats
Socials: @IslandersSball
Game 3 // A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Bryant
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Live Stats
Socials: @IslandersSball
Saturday, Feb. 8
Game 4 // A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Bryant
Time: 1 p.m. CT
Live Stats
Socials: @IslandersSball
Game 5 // A&M-Corpus Christi at Sam Houston
Time: 6 p.m. CT
Live Stats
Socials: @IslandersSball
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