DALLAS – Defending CUSA regular season and tournament champion Liberty has been voted by the league’s head coaches as the favorite to repeat as league champions, the league announced Thursday along with the preseason all-conference team. The Lady Flames account for the Preseason Player and Pitcher of the Year in senior outfielder
Rachel Roupe and senior pitcher
Elena Escobar.
The Preseason Player of the Year title adds to Roupe’s list of preseason accolades, which include the No. 38 spot on Softball America’s Preseason Top 100, the No. 42 spot on D1 Softball’s D100 list and the No. 13 outfielder in D1 Softball’s Preseason Position Rankings. She earned Second Team All-Region and First Team All-CUSA honors in 2024 after leading CUSA in doubles (17), walks (48), on base percentage (.509) and OPS (1.273).
In her first season as a Lady Flame after transferring from North Alabama, Escobar went 16-7 with a 2.75 ERA last season, tying for the CUSA lead in wins. She was named to the NFCA All-Mideast Region second team, All-CUSA second team and CUSA All-Tournament Team. Escobar finished the 2024 season ranked third in CUSA in both ERA (2.75) and strikeouts (130) last season and was fifth in opponents' batting average (.233).
The Lady Flames earned a league-high four selections to the preseason all-conference team and earned nine first-place votes and 99 total points in the preseason poll. Liberty was also represented by junior designated player
Brynn McManus and sophomore pitcher
Kaylan Yoder.
Coming off an appearance in the CUSA Softball Championship title game, WKU (83) edged out NM State (82) for the runner-up spot in the predicted order of finish, while the Aggies earned the remaining first-place vote. LA Tech (71) was voted to the No. 4 spot, followed by Jax State (56) in the fifth slot. Just eight points separated the next four teams in Sam Houston (38), UTEP (36), FIU (35) and MTSU (30), and CUSA newcomer Kennesaw State rounds out the poll with 20 points.
The preseason all-conference team includes seven returning First Team All-CUSA honorees in Roupe, Yoder, NM State two-way star
Desirae Spearman, MTSU catcher
Ansley Blevins, UTEP infielder
Ajia Richard, LA Tech outfielder
Alexis Gilio and NM State outfielder
Devin Elam.
LA Tech, NM State and Sam Houston each earned two spots on the preseason all-league squad, while FIU, Jax State, MTSU, UTEP and WKU each landed one student-athlete on the team.
The 2025 Conference USA season begins Thursday, February 6, and the 2025 CUSA Softball Championship will be May 7-10 in Bowling Green, Ky.
2025 CUSA Softball Preseason Poll
| Rank |
School (first-place votes) |
Total |
| 1. |
Liberty (9) |
99 |
| 2. |
WKU |
83 |
| 3. |
NM State (1) |
82 |
| 4. |
LA Tech |
71 |
| 5. |
Jax State |
56 |
| 6. |
Sam Houston |
38 |
| 7. |
UTEP |
36 |
| 8. |
FIU |
35 |
| 9. |
MTSU |
30 |
| 10. |
Kennesaw State |
20 |
CUSA Softball Preseason Player of the Year
Rachel Roupe, Liberty
CUSA Softball Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Elena Escobar, Liberty
CUSA Softball Preseason All-Conference Team
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Ansley Blevins, MTSU* |
Jr. |
C |
Jasper, Tenn. |
| Bella Perez, Sam Houston |
So. |
C |
Houston, Texas |
| Brynn McManus, Liberty |
Jr. |
DP/UT |
McMinnville, Ore. |
| Ashley Phillips, Jax State |
Jr. |
IF |
Alexandria, Ala. |
| Claire Raley, LA Tech* |
Sr. |
IF |
Clovis, Calif. |
| Elia Hebel, Sam Houston* |
Gr. |
IF |
Albany, Texas |
| Ajia Richard, UTEP* |
Sr. |
IF |
Silver City, N.M. |
| Morgan Sharpe, WKU* |
So. |
IF |
Chattanooga, Tenn. |
| Kally Meredith, FIU* |
So. |
OF |
Kaukauna, Wis. |
| Rachel Roupe, Liberty* |
Sr. |
OF |
Sharpsburg, Md. |
| Alexis Gilio, LA Tech* |
Sr. |
OF |
Lafayette, Colo. |
| Devin Elam, NM State* |
Jr. |
OF |
Long Beach, Calif. |
| Elena Escobar, Liberty* |
Sr. |
P |
Spring Hill, Tenn. |
| Kaylan Yoder, Liberty* |
So. |
P |
Greenwood, Del. |
| Desirae Spearman, NM State* |
So. |
P |
El Paso, Texas |
* - 2024 All-CUSA selection