A look back at South Carolina softball's busy offseason

Gamecock Softball’s 2024 campaign ended in heartbreak losing in the NCAA Regional round after a 36-24 (8-16 SEC) season. But a new dawn has come for South Carolina and head coach Ashley Chastain.

As the season quickly approaches, let’s take a look into how the offseason went for the team.

A new leader on the field

South Carolina softball parted ways with longtime head coach Beverly Smith on June 8, 2024. Smith led the Gamecocks for 14 seasons with eight postseason appearances.

Smith held a 461-323 record during her time as South Carolina’s head coach. But it was time for a fresh start in Columbia.

Chastain was hired as South Carolina’s new head coach just three days after Smith’s departure. However, this season won’t be Chastain’s first in the Garnet and Black.

“Ashley is the right choice to take our softball program to the next level,” said athletic director Ray Tanner. “She has had success in every stop of her coaching career. It is exciting to bring back a South Carolina alum to lead our softball program.”

A former Gamecock softball player herself, Chastain graduated in 2011 before becoming a graduate assistant whilst earning her Master’s degree.

“I am honored and excited to return to the University of South Carolina to lead this program,” Chastain said. “As an alumna, this university and program hold a special place in my heart, and I am committed to building on its proud tradition.”

Previously, Chastain was a pitching coach at College of Charleston (2014-16), Michigan State (2017) and Ole Miss (2018-19). Her latest stop before returning to Columbia was as the head softball coach for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte for five seasons.

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An early impact on recruits

Immediately following her new title, Chastain hit the ground running to prepare for the 2025 season. Chastain came to South Carolina with big plans to capitalize on the transfer portal and NIL.

Just nine days after her hire, Chastain and the Gamecocks landed Big South All-Freshman, Freshman of the Year, Pitcher of the Year and First-Team All-Conference player Nealy Lamb from Charleston Southern.

“I was still kind of early in the process, trying to keep my options open,” Lamb told GamecockCentral. “And then Carolina reached out and I was like, ‘Okay, never mind, this is where I want to go.’”

The commitments didn’t stop there. Chastain picked up four transfers from her old stomping grounds, Charlotte. Arianna Rodi, Sam Guess, Ella Chancey and Lexi Winters all traded in their green and white for garnet and black within a month of Chastain’s hire.

“It means the world to be able to play with them again,” Rodi told GamecockCentral. “Lexi and I have grown to be best friends as we came to Charlotte in the same recruiting class. She’s been my rock on the field and off the field for the last two years. Sam is such a competitive athlete and just makes everyone around her better with her attitude and leadership. Having Lexi and Sam being battery mates coming in together is a huge advantage as they are already so comfortable with each other.”

But Chastain’s recruiting wasn’t limited to the transfer portal. Three Softball America Top 100 players have since committed to playing for the Gamecocks.

Buford (Ga.) infielder Kadyn Gabrels committed to the Gamecocks in October. Softball America listed Gabrels as the No. 39 recruit in the class of 2026. In addition, she is the No. 17 infielder and the No. 7 player from the state of Georgia.

One of the top recruits in the country also announced she will be calling Columbia home in Sept. Boo Herber, a pitcher and utility player, is South Carolina’s highest-rated recruit from the class of 2026 hailing from Oklahoma.

In November, top Massachusetts two-way player Jillian Ondrick verbalized her commitment to the Gamecocks. Ondrick brings versatilely to the table as she had 226 strikeouts in high school whilst also batting .430.

Softball America ranked the Gamecocks 2026 recruiting class No. 19 in the country.

Departures

In order to build a resilient roster, South Carolina saw a lot of departures last spring. Eight Gamecocks graduated following the 2024 season.

Amongst those who graduated: Aniyah Black, Denver Bryant, Bailey Betenbaugh, Zoe Laneaux, Alana Vawter, Jen Cummings, Bre Warren, Riley Blampied, and Kianna Jones.

Multiple players left Columbia in search of a new place to call home: RHP/INF Reganne Bennett (Michigan), RHP Sage Mardjetko (Tennessee), INF Reagan Marchant (Louisiana Tech), and INF Kiki Estrada (Ohio State).

Preparing for season one

The Gamecocks also welcomed back just five returners from the previous season: Brooke Blankenship, Carlie Henderson, Natalie Heath, Jori Heard and Emma Sellers.

Despite all the changes in leadership and amongst the roster, South Carolina is still expected to find itself in the Top 25 preseason rankings. ESPN/USA Softball Top 25 poll rankings come out Jan. 21.

Softball America ranked newcomer Rodi No. 46 in their preseason top 100 players.

Click here for the full 2025 roster.

It’s time

After months of preparation, spring is near. The Gamecocks will open the 2025 season and the Chastain era against Virginia on Feb. 6 at Beckham Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.

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