The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Softball signs six players in nation’s No. 4-ranked recruiting class
11.09.2022 | Softball
Brown, Henry, Hunter, Kavan, Stewart & Wallace all sign NLI’s to bolster the Longhorns program
AUSTIN, Texas – Head softball coach Mike White and the University of Texas softball program announced on Wednesday the signing of six student-athletes to National Letters of Intent (NLI) for the 2023-24 academic school year.
Signees include (Position(s)/Hometown/High School/Travel Ball): Ryan Brown (IF/Thompson's Station, Tenn./Independence High School/Top Gun 18U National), Kayden Henry (OF/Texas City, Texas/Dickinson High School/Bombers HTX Gold-Smith), Victoria Hunter (IF/Houston, Texas/St. Pius X High School/Impact Gold Jackson), Teagan Kavan (P/West Des Moines, Iowa/Dowling Catholic High School/Iowa Premier Fastpitch), Katie Stewart (C/IF/Frankfort, Illinois/Lincoln-Way East High School/Lady Dukes 18U Lamar/Burgess & Extreme Elite 18U National) and Adayah Wallace (OF/Plano, Texas/Plano West Senior High School/ Lady Dukes 18U Lamar/Burgess)
Overall, the 2023 Texas signing class was rated No. 4 in the nation by Extra Inning Softball. All six signees were also listed among Extra Inning Softball's 2023 Extra Elite 100 recruiting rankings (with four of those highlighted in the national top 12): Henry (No. 5), Stewart (No. 9), Kavan (No. 11), Hunter (No. 12), Brown (No. 51) and Wallace (No. 99). According to Perfect Game's Class of 2023 softball recruiting rankings, Henry (No. 3), Kavan (No. 5), Brown (No. 21) and Stewart (No. 40) all rated in the national top 40.
"We are very excited to welcome in an outstanding 2023 Texas softball signing class," White said. "I certainly feel that this is one of the best incoming classes in the nation, and it will truly cover all major areas of need with pitching, power, speed and defense."
Texas Softball Signing Class
Ryan Brown
Position: IF
Hometown: Thompson's Station, Tenn.
High School: Independence H.S.
Travel Ball: Top Gun 18U National
A native of Thompson's Station, Tenn., Brown is rated at No. 21 in the Perfect Game Top 50 Class of 2023 recruit rankings and No. 51 overall (tie) according to Extra Inning Softball's Extra Elite 100. A two-sport athlete at Independence H.S. in both softball and basketball, Brown earned both 2022 All-District 12-4A and District Softball Offensive Player of the Year honors and was a finalist for Wilco Softball Player of the Year following a junior season that saw her hit a remarkable .627 overall (42-for-67) with 29 runs scored, 12 doubles, three triples, seven HR's and 27 RBIs, while owning a 1.922 OPS. As a sophomore, Brown hit at a .402 (33-for-82) clip with 21 runs scored, 17 extra-base hits, including six HR's, and 19 RBIs. With her club program Top Gun 18U National, she has been selected as a Premier Girls Fastpitch (PGF) All-Region nominee and previously hit .400 overall for the 16U squad back in 2020.
Coach White on Ryan Brown: "Ryan carries a physical presence at the plate, and along with her leadership qualities, is an exciting player to add to our program. The Texas fans will love to watch her play at UT."
Kayden Henry
Position: OF
Hometown: Texas City, Texas
High School: Dickinson H.S.
Travel Ball: Bombers HTX Gold-Smith
Listed at No. 3 overall in Perfect Game's Top 50 Class of 2023 recruit rankings and No. 5 (tie) in Extra Inning Softball's 2023 Extra Elite 100, Henry has been a multi-sport star in softball and track & field at Dickinson H.S. A product of Texas City, Texas, she's both a two-time All-District 24-6A (2021, 2022) and all-county selection on the softball diamond. During her most recent campaign as a junior in 2022, Henry batted .444 overall with 21 runs scored, 28 hits, 31 stolen bases, a 493 on-base percentage and a 1.176 OPS. As a sophomore she hit .500 with 36 runs, 40 hits, 23 steals, eight triples and 17 RBIs, while as a freshman Henry posted a .521 batting mark with 35 runs, 38 hits, 17 steals, 10 triples and a 1.491 OPS. For her club program, Bombers HTX Gold-Smith, she has registered batting averages of .474 (2020-21), .463 (2021-22) and .655 (2022) while helping power her squad to a pair of Colorado Sparkler titles (2019, 2021) a Kansas City World Fastpitch crown (2019) and Alliance Fastpitch (2021, 2022), Colorado Sparkler (2022) and USA Softball All-American (2017) runner-up finishes. Henry was named the 2022 Super Cup Most Valuable Player (also All-Tournament First Team) and to the 2022 Alliance Fastpitch All-Tournament First Team. On the track, she's been a two-time regional qualifier with personal records of 11.7 in the 100m and 24.3 in the 200m dashes.
Coach White on Kayden Henry: "Kayden is an electric player in the mold of Janae Jefferson and Mia Scott. She is truly dynamic on the field and will thrill Texas fans with her plays both offensively and defensively."
Victoria Hunter
Position: IF
Hometown: Houston, Texas
High School: St. Pius X H.S.
Travel Ball: Impact Gold Jackson
Ranked in a tie for No. 12 overall according to Extra Inning Softball's 2023 Extra Elite 100, Hunter has demonstrated impressive power throughout her standout career at St. Pius X H.S. The Houston, Texas, native has been decorated as a three-time all-state (2020, 2021, 2022) and All-District 4 First Team selection, a player of the year and member of the 2022 All-VYPE Private School Team, first-team All-Greater Houston and a Lone Star Preps Top Texas Infielder and an Extra Inning Softball National High School Player of the Week Runner-Up (May 3, 2022). During her career, Hunter has posted batting averages of .444 (2020), .648 (2021) and .618 (2022), while totaling 114 combined hits, including 32 doubles, 10 triples and 32 HR's, to go along with 119 career RBIs. During her most recent campaign in 2022, she hit .618 overall with 15 doubles, four triples, 12 HR's and 35 RBIs. For her club team Impact Gold Jackson, Hunter helped her team to a RBI World Series title and was previously named a 12U USA Softball All-American. Off the field, she's demonstrated her abilities in the classroom by earning three Academic All-State First Team selections (2020, 2021, 2022).
Coach White on Victoria Hunter: "Victoria is a confident player that possesses a big bat and will drive the ball to all fields. She is another student-athlete who will post big numbers during her time on the Forty Acres."
Teagan Kavan
Position: P
Hometown: West Des Moines, Iowa
High School: Dowling Catholic H.S.
Travel Ball: Iowa Premier Fastpitch
While playing club softball exclusively for Iowa Premier Fastpitch (does not play high school softball), Kavan earned a No. 5 national listing as part of Perfect Game's Top 50 Class of 2023 and a No. 11 (tie) ranking according to the most recent release of Extra Inning Softball's 2023 Extra Elite 100. The 6-0 right-handed pitcher has posted remarkable club career pitching totals of 1,444 strikeouts over 772.2 innings pitched to go along with 45 shutouts and six no-hitters. Kavan was named to the 2022 Alliance Super Cup All-Tournament Team, to the 2021 Colorado Sparkler Future All-Star Game and was the MVP of both the 2020 16U Top Club Invitational and the 2020 Worlds Fastpitch Championship. During the 2022 spring/summer club season, she struck out 251 batters over 128 innings with a 1.40 ERA, 14 shutouts and two no-hitters. Kavan has also proven to be prolific offensively, registering over 100 combined hits with 127 career RBIs. Internationally, she was the youngest of 32 athletes invited to try out for the 2021 USA Softball U19 Women's National Team.
Coach White on Teagan Kavan: "Teagan is a future ace for this program with her excellent movement, speed and change of pace from the circle. She has that rare combination of possessing all the necessary pitches in her arsenal to combat hitters at this level."
Katie Stewart
Position: C/IF
Hometown: Frankfort, Illinois
High School: Lincoln-Way East H.S.
Travel Ball: Lady Dukes 18U Lamar/Burgess & Extreme Elite 18U National
A product of Lincoln-Way H.S. in Frankfort, Illinois, Stewart was listed in a tie for No. 9 according to the Extra Inning Softball 2023 Extra Elite 100 and No. 40 in Perfect Game's Top 50 Class of 2023 recruit rankings. A multi-time all-state, All-Southwest Suburban Blue Conference and all-area selection, Stewart is coming off a junior interscholastic campaign that saw her bat .500 overall with 46 hits, 10 steals, nine doubles, two triples, 15 HR's and 41 RBIs. Over her club career, she has been named to the Colorado Sparkler Future Stars Game, a Premier Girls Fastpitch (PGF) Futures All-American and was selected to the 2019 PGF Platinum All-Tournament Team after helping her squad to a runner-up finish. During her most recent season with Extreme Elite 18U National during the summer of 2022, Stewart hit at a .473 clip with 52 hits, 23 extra-base hits, including 15 HR's, and 44 RBIs.
Coach White on Katie Stewart: "Katie is a five-tool athlete capable of playing multiple positions and possesses the power to provide Texas fans with many home runs during her career at the University of Texas."
Adayah Wallace
Position: OF
Hometown: Plano, Texas
High School: Plano West Senior H.S.
Travel Ball: Lady Dukes 18U Lamar/Burgess
A native of Plano, Texas, Wallace was listed at No. 99 overall in the most recent release of the Extra Inning Softball 2023 Extra Elite 100 player rankings. A two-time All-District 6-6A selection (2021, 2022), she was selected to both the 2022 Star Local Media All-Area Softball First Team and the 2022 DFW FP All-Metroplex Second Team after hitting .451 overall with a .495 on-base percentage, 41 hits, 36 runs, 44 stolen bases and 15 RBIs. During her sophomore campaign, Wallace batted at a .321 clip with 25 hits, 22 runs and 25 steals. Also a 2018 participant in the AAU Junior Olympic Games, she has played club softball during her career for the Lady Dukes 18U Lamar/Burgess.
Coach White on Adayah Wallace: "Adayah will be a force on the base paths for the Longhorns. She will also be a defensive specialist, adding to our overall depth during her first year, while her warm personality will contribute to our clubhouse strength."