SAN MARCOS, Texas – Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) announced Monday morning that Texas State Softball Head Coach Ricci Woodard will be the head coach of the Volts for their 2026 season. Coaching the Volts will be in addition to Woodard's role as the head coach of Texas State softball. She will join as the second-ever head coach of the Volts as the team prepares for their next season in the AUSL, beginning in the summer of 2026.

Last season, the Volts finished third place in the team's inaugural season with an 8-16 record. This season, Woodard will be at the helm for the first professional coaching job of her career. Woodard has been the head coach at Texas State since 2001, winning eight regular season championships, six tournament championships, accumulating over 875 career wins and making 11 NCAA tournament appearances.

The Volts are managed by General Manager Cat Osterman. Osterman, in addition to her prolific college and professional playing career, spent six seasons on Texas State's staff with Woodard from 2015 to 2020. Osterman was the inaugural of Athletes Unlimited Softball Champion and a three-time Olympic medalist. She is in her second year as the general manager of the Volts.

The Volts currently have a roster of five protected players who were selected by Osterman as the team and league prepare for the AUSL Draft on Dec. 1. Woodard will inherit pitcher Rachel Garcia, outfielder Amanda Lorenz, utility player and former Texas Longhorn Mia Scott, outfielder Tiare Jennings, and catcher Dejah Mulipola.

The league's draft will take place on Dec. 1 at 6 pm (CT) in two parts, with both an expansion draft and an allocation draft. Starting with the expansion draft, the league's two newest teams, the Oklahoma City Spark and Cascade, will select unprotected players from the rosters of the four teams who competed last season. The allocation draft to follow will allow for all six AUSL teams to select any players not on another team's roster to join their team.

Woodard and Texas State Softball will begin their season in February 2026 on the road at the Kajikawa Classic, hosted by Arizona State. For the full schedule and most up to date information on Texas State softball's 2026 season, go to txst.com.