Missouri softball released its SEC schedule ahead of the season, following a sub-par season from Larissa Anderson & Company in 2025.
Even months before the real season starts, question marks are already raised. The Tigers graduated three starters (Taylor Ebbs, Kara Daly, Julia Crenshaw) and also lost key pitcher Taylor Pannell (Texas A&M) and power hitter Madison Walker (Florida) to the transfer portal.
To combat, the team was supposed to add a bunch of players… right? Wrong. Anderson & Co. only added
two portal players this offseason and will hope to get production from their returners (many of whom weren’t everyday starters) and a slew of freshmen. Karen thinks Anderson’s seat is a bit toasty after last season’s debacle and a pretty unproductive portal season, so it will definitely be something to monitor.
Sophomore 3-star pitcher Rylee Michalak (Houston) and senior 4-star outfielder Emma Jackson (ECU) are the new additions, and it will really take seeing them actually play to see how they’ll adjust to the SEC.
This season, the Southeastern Conference is expected to continue its dominance through collegiate softball. Mizzou won’t have an easy path ahead as it takes on numerous Top 25 opponents from a year ago.
The Tigers commence SEC play on the road for the second consecutive season, this time against the Florida Gators in Gainesville, Florida March 6-8. Last season, Mizzou was swept in its opening series against Kentucky, so let’s not shoot for a repeat. The Gators, who finished sixth in the SEC, ended up making the Women’s College World Series after a Super Regional win over Georgia at home. These two teams did not face one another in 2025, and last faced off in the SEC title game in 2024. (Karen/Editor’s note: that seems like a lifetime ago.)
Florida made a lot of moves this offseason, including acquiring Mizzou’s leading hitter, Madison Walker, who announced her new destination on June 12. Along with Walker, the team added four other transfers (including three 4-star recruits, per On3). Besides Walker, Karen is keen to watch Mississippi State transfer catcher Ella Weslowski, who Mizzou went after pretty hard (they really needed a catcher to replace Crenshaw). Despite a number of transfers, including star infielder Mia Williams, Florida appears strong and will look to make it back to the WCWS.
Following their series against the Gators, the Tigers head home to host Alabama March 20-22. The Crimson Tide swept the Tigers during the 2025 season, and Mizzou will be looking for revenge in the friendly confines of Mizzou Softball Stadium. This will be a big series for the Tigers, and hopefully they’ll earn some wins out of it.
Alabama had two strong additions in this portal cycle in sophomore Brooke Wells (4-star, Houston) and junior Jena Young (4-star, Iowa). They’ll look for improvement after finishing last season ranked 14th in the conference.
Following a home matchup against Alabama, Missouri goes back on the road — to the state of Alabama, actually — to face Auburn March 27-29. This is another important series for the Tigers, as Auburn was one of the league’s bottom teams, tied for last with the black and gold. Last season, the teams didn’t meet, so this season should be a clash of Tigers.
Auburn added a handful of transfers this offseason and will look for a breakout player out of the bunch. I’d keep an eye on sophomore Ella Harrison, a pitcher who transferred in this offseason from Rutgers. As for Karen, Tennessee transfer Destiny Rodriguez’s name rings a bell, so she’s another one to monitor. Notably, of their six additions, only one (Harrison) is a 4-star, per On3.
By this point in the season, Tigers’ fans will hope to have a few conference wins, because they’ll need them racked up when they face three straight teams who finished last season ranked nationally in the top 20. First, the Tigers will travel to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to take on No. 19 LSU April 3-5.
The Bayou Bengals, who finished 9th in the SEC a year ago, made a bunch of moves this offseason, highlighted by the addition of redshirt-sophomore outfielder Char Lorenz, who transferred from Louisville. The team also added a couple of new pitchers after losing Sydney Berzon, a five-star transfer who left for national champ Oklahoma.
Next, Missouri will head back home to host No. 17 Georgia April 10-12, and then head back out on the road to Columbia East to face the South Carolina Gamecocks April 17-19.
The Bulldogs added a top portal pitcher in UCLA transfer Addisen Fisher, who comes to Athens with three years of eligibility. Georgia finished 7-16 in SEC play last season — 12th in the SEC — and will look to be a little more competitive during the regular season. Don’t look now, Karen says, as besides Fisher, the Dawgs also added four more players, including three 4-star transfers.
The Gamecocks, who finished 10th in the SEC, were another team who made loads of moves this offseason in the transfer portal. The team lost seven players to the portal but added another nine in the process. (For reference, Mizzou lost five and gained two.) None of South Carolina’s additions were really ‘elite’ portal gets, per se, but everybody in the class is solid. Karen will be keeping an eye on Mississippi State transfer pitcher Josey Marron, who mainly worked in relief in 2025, but was one of the Bulldogs’ best starters in 2024. The Gamecocks should have a fierce, but new, look to their offense.
Just when you thought things were slowing down, the Tigers finish their season with arguably their hardest stretch.
First, the Tigers go on the road to face their rival, the Arkansas Razorbacks April 24-26. Arkansas had a ton of momentum last season come postseason time due to the play of Bri Ellis, one of the game’s brightest players. She has since graduated, and the team had (surprisingly) barely any portal turnover. A massive addition to watch out for, per Karen, is Arizona transfer outfielder, Dakota Kennedy, one of few 5-star transfers that the Tigers will face in the coming season. The Razorbacks’ run was cut short in Super Regionals against Ole Miss, but they’ll be back for revenge with a very similar team to last year’s.
Mizzou finishes its regular season with a series against Tennessee at home April 30-May 2. The Lady Volunteers reached the championship series (i.e. the final four teams) of the Women’s College World Series last season and have made a lot of adjustments to their roster this offseason. While they lost star outfielder Taylor Pannell (not to be confused with Mizzou’s now-former pitcher, Taylor Pannell), the re-upped with three top transfers, including a pair from Boise State in junior Sophia Knight and sophomore Mackenzie Butt; they’ll be a duo to keep an eye on. Karen is also eying Eastern Kentucky transfer Maddi Rutan, a pitcher who also has a lethal bat.
No schedule is an easy schedule in the SEC, but I’d argue the Tigers have one of the harder ones. Despite avoiding powerhouses Oklahoma and Texas — both of which they hosted last season — the Tigers will still have their hands full this season once conference play is underway.
