Athletes Unlimited Softball League Announces Inaugural Draft
The Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) announced the league’s inaugural draft will be held live on Wednesday, January 29 at 8 p.m. ET, with details on where to watch coming soon.
The AUSL Inaugural Draft will allocate the player pool to the four teams, (the Bandits, Blaze, Talons, and Volts), and will be decentralized, a format used in the MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL. The coaches and general managers will select from their own locations rather than traveling to a central location.
With the league set to start in May, the four teams will make 12 selections. The general manager and head coach will build a 16-player roster and leave the four remaining spots open for a combination of free agents and the NCAA incoming class who will become pro-eligible at the end of their collegiate seasons.
Many illustrious players have already declared for the draft including 2022 AU Pro Softball Champion Dejah Mulipola, 2023 Defensive Player of the Year Jessi Warren, Carley Hoover, and Montana Fouts, with more to sign ahead of the draft.
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Picks will be selected in a rotating draft order and designated by lottery. To ensure parity, the first pick of each round will rotate amongst the four teams.
- Round 1: Team A, Team B, Team C, Team D
- Round 2: Team B, Team C, Team D, Team A
- Round 3: Team C, Team D, Team A, Team B
- Round 4: Team D, Team A, Team B, Team C
As announced previously, the AUSL has a highly decorated and seasoned group of softball veterans serving as general managers and head coaches.
General manager and head coach lineup:
- Bandits: Jenny Dalton-Hill and Stacey Nuveman-Deniz
- Blaze: Dana Sorensen and Alisa Goler
- Talons: Lisa Fernandez and Howard Dobson
- Volts: Cat Osterman and Kelly Kretschman
Complementing the existing AU Pro Softball Championship Season, the AUSL will play in a traditional format, with the four teams touring six to eight different cities throughout a 30-game season. The teams will each be assigned to a single city when the league becomes city-based in 2026.
