Athletes Unlimited Softball (AUSL) opened its second season with a pro softball triple-header that set the tone for 2026. Expansion teams made their mark, offenses came alive early, and the defending champions picked up right where they left off.
AUSL Expansion Teams Make Their Scoring Debut
The Spark routed the Texas Volts 13-5 in the day's first game. Expansion draft pick Maya Brady delivered the biggest moment, launching a grand slam to center field to log the Spark's first-ever runs as a franchise. Following Brady's heroics, Sydney Romero added a follow-up home run to put the game out of reach.
Later that evening, the Carolina Blaze handed the Portland Cascade a 4-1 loss in Portland's debut. Still, Cascade shortstop Sis Bates gave the hometown crowd something to cheer for, recording the first hit and run in franchise history.
Montana Fouts Silences Bandits in AUSL Championship Rematch
The night's marquee event paired the defending champion Utah Talons against the Texas Bandits. The AUSL championship rematch saw the Talons control the game early, coming away with a 5-2 win.
Bri Ellis carried the Utah offense with a two-run homer and RBI double. Meanwhile, in the circle, Montana Fouts matched her by throwing a complete game and holding the Bandits to just two runs on scattered hits.
With the expanded AUSL looking deeper than ever, the 2026 season looks to be the most competitive yet.
AUSL Schedule: Where to Watch This Week's Games
Next up, the Volts will take on the Spark on Wednesday at 6 PM ET, live on MLB.TV.
The Portland Cascade follows, looking to bounce back against the Blaze at 8 PM ET (ESPN2), before the Bandits shoot for a win against the Talons at 10 PM ET (ESPNU).
Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) stocked up by adding 43 former NCAA and Olympic stars to its ranks on Monday night, with Talons utility player Maya Brady — niece of retired NFL legend Tom Brady — leading the charge as the No. 1 overall pick by the incoming Oklahoma City Spark in the league's expansion draft.
Starting the inaugural 2025 AUSL campaign on injured reserve, the former UCLA standout went on to feature in six games for the championship-winning Talons, registering one double, one home run, and five RBIs on the season.
The now-six -team league absorbed the previously independent Spark as part of an initial expansion plan, acquiring the Oklahoma City-based squad with the intention of finding permanent homes for all AUSL teams in the near future.
Also joining the AUSL next year is new franchise Cascade, which snagged Volts pitcher and former University of Oklahoma ace Sam Landry as the No. 2 overall pick on Monday.
Though the four original teams protected five players each, the Spark and Cascade raided their rosters in the expansion draft, claiming stars like infielders Sydney Romero (Talons) and Jessi Warren (Volts) as well as pitchers Alana Vawter (Blaze) and Payton Gottshall (Volts) for their debut lineups.
Immediately following the expansion draft, all six teams took part in an allocation draft, selecting athletes from either the 2025 AUSL Reserve Pool or those previously competing outside the league.
Former Oklahoma and Oklahoma State pitcher Kelly Maxwell earned the top pick in the allocation draft, with the new Cascade player joined by other recent NCAA softball legends like former Sooners Kinzie Hansen, Jayda Coleman, and Jocelyn Alo, Florida State's Kat Sandercock and Sydney Sherrill, Washington's Sis Bates, and Clemson's Valerie Cagle.