FSU softball wins ACC regular season and eyes deep postseason run to WCWS

Comparing this 2025 team to last year's team
Florida State head coach Lonni Alameda coaches the Seminoles during a game against the Florida Gators on Wednesday, April 2, 2025.
Florida State head coach Lonni Alameda coaches the Seminoles during a game against the Florida Gators on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. | Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

FSU softball (44-8, 18-3 ACC) clinched the ACC regular-season title with a series win over Virginia Tech over the weekend. The Noles will head into the ACC Tournament as the No. 1 seed and will play the winner of the Georgia Tech/California game.

The Noles swept California and didn't play Georgia Tech because their series got canceled when the shooting on campus took place.

This 2025 FSU softball team is a better version than last year's, which lost in the Super Regional against Oklahoma. They have more depth in the circle and a better overall offense now that Jahni Kerr and Katie Dack found their stride after struggling earlier in the season. Here's how they match up compared to last year's team.

Pitching

FSU has four pitchers that can trot out to the circle with confidence, compared to maybe two last year. The overall team ERA is 2.32 and the WHIP is 1.08 compared to 3.71 and 1.49 last year. Opposing batters his .225 this year compared to .263.

FSU pitchers have surpassed last year's strikeout totals in 10 fewer games(274 to 259) and the walks have decreased by more than 50 percent(only 72 in 52 games compared to 182 in 62 games).

Hitting

FSU doesn't have the same power numbers as a year ago, but hit .360 this year compared to .333. They get on base at a higher clip, .446 to .419, and only strikeout in 11.4 percent of their at-bats, with a slightly higher slugging percentage than last year.

FSU losing a player the caliber of Kennedy Harp is a huge blow. She was hitting .412 and among the team leaders in several offensive categories.

Defensively

Defensively, they probably have taken a small step back (especially at second base with the loss of Devyn Flaherty) compared to last year's team, but a good bit of the errors have come via the pitchers this year.

The biggest difference between the two teams is the depth inside the circle. It's amazing FSU got as far as they did with freshman Ashtyn Danley carrying much of the load late in the year. Danley's growth, the additions of Annabelle Widra, Julia Apsel, and freshman Jazzy Francik provide FSU a greater margin of error if someone's not performing well. Makenna Reid could help pitch a few innings as well. FSU should do well in the ACC Tournament and receive one of the better seeds in the postseason. If this team continues to play well, they have a shot at a deep postseason run once again.

Schedule