ROUND ROCK, Texas – The Texas Volts spent their second AUSL season making constant adjustments, and by the time the 25 games were gone there was no room left to make it up. Texas finished 7-18 and last in the six-team league.
What the record does not show is that six of those 18 losses came by one or two runs. The team Cat Osterman put together never gave in and played like there was always a chance. It does not show that the most effective arm on the pitching staff was a player the Volts drafted to hit, or that the everyday third baseman was a provisional pick who had never played the position and did not know in May whether she would have a professional season at all.
The general manager laid the season out Tuesday during the team’s end of season press conference, and the list started before the first pitch. Amanda Lorenz was out due to pregnancy. Ciara Briggs, the Volts’ starting center fielder in year one, was still recovering from a medical situation, and Kelsey Stewart-Hunter and Mia Scott did not clear physicals from the beginning, with Scott never playing at all.
“There was just a lot that we had to fill in, and we had to kind of adjust on the fly,” Osterman said. “We thought we found a great replacement in Aminah Vega, and then we find out she’s in the middle of a job interview situation. So while she did great things for us, we knew we were going to have to lose her at one point, too.”
Jessica Mullins signed on expecting a two-week stint and stayed the rest of the year. Jaila Lassiter and Jackie Lis came in without knowing they would get a professional season at all. Throughout the season, there was constant movement on this roster.
“Every time I turned around, our equipment manager was putting a new name on a uniform for us,” head coach Ricci Woodard said. “So I think anytime you’re doing that with a 16 man roster, it’s going to make things tough, and you only have 25 games to figure it out.”
Texas was out of the race pretty early. Osterman said what she will keep from the season is how this team kept competing.
“I don’t think anyone is pleased with how we finished, but I am very pleased with how the team fought throughout the season,” Osterman said. “Early on, they could have thrown in the towel, because it looked like we were out of the race pretty quickly, and they didn’t. We had a lot of really good ballgames. And to be honest, with the hand we were dealt prior to season even starting, we kind of had to deal with adversity.”
Dejah Mulipola said the same thing in the last series of the season. After a July 17 win over the Portland Cascade in Hillsboro, Ore., with Texas long since eliminated, the catcher was asked about the continued fight.
“Regardless of the standings, I’m still trying to have fun with my teammates and enjoy being out there,” Mulipola said. “We still want to put a product out on the field and represent the Volts well. So, I mean, I compete every time, whether we’re losing or winning, I’m just trying to compete, be a hard out every time.”
The scoreboard told that more than the standings did. Flip the six one and two run losses and Texas finishes 13-12, with a shot.
Denham’s one start
Alyssa Denham made her lone appearance June 10 and went on the injured reserve list the next day. She finished with 6 innings, 4 hits and 3 runs allowed, and Texas never got the look back.
“To me that kind of changed what we did on the mound a lot,” Woodard said. “Just because she gave us such a different look, and could have helped us a lot. And I think adding that piece back next year makes the Volts a completely different pitching staff also.”
That left the innings to a staff still working out what it was. NiJaree Canady made 8 starts across 10 appearances and went 1-6 with a 4.67 ERA, though she delivered the club’s only complete game and only shutout. Rachel Garcia led the team with 44.1 innings and 52 strikeouts and finished 1-5 with a 4.26 ERA.
Ally Carda joined the group after finishing her season in Japan and gave Texas 9 solid appearances, going 1-2 with a 3.50 ERA over 26 innings with 5 starts.
Binford in the circle
Aliyah Binford led the Volts with 17 appearances and a 2.89 ERA, working 36.1 innings, all but one appearance in relief. She held opponents to a .234 average, the lowest mark on the staff, struck out 21, walked 12 and recorded the team’s only save. Her 3 wins were the most by any Texas pitcher.
“When we drafted Binford, we really drafted her for her bat,” Osterman said. “We knew she’s one of the few that hits the true, true inside pitch well. And she did that early on, and then she didn’t get that pitch anymore, so she started having to adjust to middle out and off-speed.
“But I knew she’d factor in our circle. Didn’t predict her to throw as much as she did, and she knows that. We’ve had that conversation. But she did her relief role really, really well because of the way she can throw her changeup. She attacks the strike zone well, and so she thrived in that role.
“But that’s a kid that just wants to win, and goes out and really plays just for the sole purpose of trying to figure out how she’s going to win. And so I was really excited for what she did for us this season, and especially in the increased pitching role than what I expected.”
Woodard said the willingness to do more started early and never stopped.
“I think the biggest thing that I love about Binford is that she loves to compete,” Woodard said. “And so there were times she would just be like, ‘Coach, I can do whatever you need me to,’ because obviously early on I was like, ‘Hey, we need you to focus more on hitting than pitching.’ And then all of a sudden we were kind of changing that role on her, and she said, ‘I just want to be in the lineup and I want to help however I can help.'”
“We even tried to use her at first base some, and she was like, ‘Oh, okay. I’ll try,'” Woodard said. “Because we wanted to keep her bat in the lineup. And so again, she’s just a kid that competes her tail end off. And I’m not sure we win some of those early games without Aliyah Binford, that’s for sure.”
Lis at third
Vega’s departure emptied third base, and Texas went to Jackie Lis. She finished having appeared in 22 games with 18 starts, hitting .292 with 2 home runs, 8 RBIs and a .424 on-base percentage.
Osterman said the conversation was pretty short. Lis was asked whether she had ever played third, said no, then agreed to go take balls over there.
“I’m not sure we missed a beat with her at third base,” Osterman said. “Aminah Vega made some great plays, but I think Jackie Lis did a heck of a job over there at third base.”
The quality appearances at the plate were there before the hits became more. Lis drew 11 walks in 48 at-bats.
“I think the big thing with Jackie that stands out is one, you watch how she hits. She’s just a pure hitter,” Osterman said. “But she also has good at-bats all the way around. I think she probably led us in walks even with her limited ABs early on.”
Lis hit .323 over her final 12 games, and .533 with an OPS of 1.733 in her last six.
“And so then we got to see the Jackie Lis that everyone saw in college come to life there the last, like, third of season,” Osterman said. “So I knew what she was capable of. Did I know if we were going to see it or not? No, but I also think her being able to just settle into third and know she was playing every day really gave her a chance to get comfortable, and then yeah, we got to see the fireworks offensively, which was really exciting.”
Lis is another solid rookie that the AUSL saw this season. Coming into a situation that she did not believe she would be around for, Lis remained cool through it all.
“And if you talk to Jackie, she’s pretty chill. There’s no highs or lows. Jackie Lis is Jackie Lis every day,” Osterman said. “And so regardless of how she was hitting, she comes to the field and comes off the field pretty much the same way. And that’s one of the things we appreciated, is just she didn’t ride the roller coaster of seasons.”
On to 2027
So, what will make the Texas Volts a better team in 2027? Both Osterman and Woodard pointed to something that takes a no-excuse approach.
“I think the biggest thing for us is consistency,” Woodard said. “We have to show up and do the same thing every day no matter who’s in the other dugout and who’s on the field, in my opinion.”
Osterman also pointed to what Canady built in her first professional summer working with pitching coach Josh Trevino. She didn’t have the type of rookie season that she or many expected. However, she did come along late and that should bode as good momentum going into next season. As for the roster overall, Osterman will study it.
“But we’re going to go back to the drawing board and figure out what moves, if any, we need to make to strengthen our roster,” Osterman said. “Obviously, the plan was for Amanda Lorenz to come back, so we look forward to that in the next season. But hopefully next season we won’t be starting off with as many hurdles to clear right out the gate.”
