In a previous article\, I talked about the career of Caitlin Clark, whose popularity has massively increased the popularity of NCAA womens college basketball and the WNBA. The only thing keeping fastpitch softball from a similar explosion in popularity is their own Caitlin Clark. America is ready for her, and it’s only a matter of time before she arrives. At a high level, what went into creating a Caitlin Clark in womens basketball is (1) elite play, (2) an elite postseason performance, and (3) one special moment that gets the whole country’s attention.
Here are my top 3 finalists of NCAA softball players that are most likely to be their sport’s Caitlin Clark.
#3 – Jayden Heavener – Soph Pitcher, LSU Tigers
Checked the box during her freshman season in 2025 for elite play by making freshman All-American Second Team, and ranking 13th in the nation in strike outs per 7 innings, and ranking 45th in the nation with 152 strike outs. And guess what? Her first ever game was a perfect game against Charlotte.
Heavener ended the season with a 13-5 in loss record, 2.75 ERA, 119.2 innings pitched, 152 strike outs. Though the postseason did not go LSU’s way. The Tigers made the playoffs but were eliminated in the regional round.
#2 Taylor Shumaker –Outfielder, Florida Gators
Last year, her freshman season was one of the best all time. She was named the unanimous freshman of the year and was a first team all American. Tied Florida Gator records for home runs and RBI. Her 22 home runs ranked 11th nationally, 86 RBI were 2nd nationally, 72 runs were 5th nationally, and 164 total basis ranked 7th nationally. Elite play? BIG CHECK. Shumaker and the Gators also made the WCWS in 2025, but were eliminated with back to back losses in WCWS against Texas and Tennessee.
#1 Teagan Kavan – Junior Pitcher, Texas Longhorns
In 2025, as a sophomore, Kavan and the Longhorns climbed the mountain and won the national championship for the first time in program history, and Kavan was a major reason for their success. She closed the season with a 28-5 record, her 2.24 ERA was good enough for 41st in the nation, 207 innings pitched ranked 10th in the nation, 230 strike outs ranked 14th.
Kavan set a Texas Longhorn record with 6 wins in the WCWS including an 8-strikeout complete game win against Oklahoma in the WCWS. She was also named a 2nd team All American.
2026 is going to be a big year for college softball, and if softball’s Caitlin Clark arrives this year, my bet is that it’s one of these three players. We will all just have to stay tuned to find out!
