The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
2022 Softball Roster
Roster
Sophia Simpson
- Position:
- RHP
- Height:
- 5-10
- Class:
- Freshman
- High School:
- Barbers Hill
- Hometown:
- Mont Belvieu, Texas
- Major:
- Communication & Leadership
Career Accolades
- 1x NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete (2023-24)
- 1x All-Big 12 Freshman Team (2022*)
- 1x Academic All-Big 12 Second Team (2023)
- 1x Academic All-Big 12 First Team (2024)
*unanimous
2024, Junior
Tossed 22.1 innings in 13 appearances in the pitching circle throughout her junior season in 2024 ... struck out a season-high eight batters in three innings of relief work against UTA (3/6) ... fanned at least one batter in all 13 pitching appearances ... recorded a scoreless appearance in the circle in nine of her 13 trips into the game ... credited with three-inning saves against UTA (3/6) and Nicholls (4/25) ... allowed just three extra base hits throughout the duration of the season ... made six scoreless appearances, including an inning of work at Baylor (4/12) ... made an appearance against Baylor (5/10) in the semifinals of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Softball Championship, when she worked one inning, struck out one batter and surrendered just one hit ... threw two scoreless innings and struck out four batters against Stanford (2/16) in Clearwater, Fla., ... struck out four in a perfect six-up, six-down appearance against Hofstra (3/2) ... finished the season with a 10.97 strikeout per seven-inning game average ... limited right-handed batters to a .140 (6-43) batting average and left-handed hitters to a .171 (7-41) clip ... posted a .114 (5-44) opponent batting average with the bases empty ... allowed just three leadoff batters to reach in 22 opportunities (.136) ...
2023, Sophomore
Made 26 appearances in the pitching circle for the Longhorns ... finished the season with a 4-1 record and a 2.60 earned run average (ERA) and two saves while limiting opponents to a .210 batting average in 62.0 innings of work ... held left-handed batters to a .104 (8-77) batting average on the season ... her .205 opponent batting average (24-117) with runners on base was the lowest average on the Texas pitching staff ... averaged 9.71 strikeouts based on a seven-inning game ... finished the season with a 2.3 strikeout-to-walk average ... earned two wins while holding opposing batters to a .191 batting average in 18.1 innings of work throughout nine appearances in conference-only games ... earned her first save of the season by throwing three scoreless innings with six strikeouts against Wisconsin (3/11) ... picked up her first pitching victory on the year after throwing 4.1 innings of scoreless softball in a start against Abilene Christian (2/25) ... struck out six batters and did not allow a run in 3.1 innings of relief against Baylor (5/5) ... tossed two perfect innings with three strikeouts to earn the save against Texas A&M (5/20) ... came back the following day (5/21) and struck out four more Aggies and did not allow a run to help Texas win the NCAA Austin Regional ... struck out five and did not allow a run in three combined innings of work across two games against Texas (3/25 - 3/26) ... struck out five and issued only one walk and scatted four singles in 3.1 innings of relief against Alabama (3/11) ... struck out six and issued only one walk and two hits in 3.1 innings of work against Princeton (3/4) ...
2022, Freshman
Named a unanimous selection to the Big 12 Conference All-Freshman Team ... went 8-4 from the circle with a 3.57 earned run average (ERA) over 29 appearances with 16 starts, six complete games, two solo shutouts and one save ... struck out 105 batters over 86.1 innings of work while limiting opponents to a .247 average ... struck out two and allowed one hit in 1.2 innings of relief during the second game of the Women's College World Series (WCWS) Championship Series against No. 1 Oklahoma (6/9) ... with Texas facing elimination in the final contest of the NCAA Fayetteville Super Regional at No. 4 Arkansas (5/28), Simpson overcame immense pressure to fire a complete-game, five-hit shutout with seven strikeouts to send the Longhorns on to the WCWS ... picked up the victory at Texas Tech (4/30) by permitting one run on two hits with a walk and five striking over four frames ... earned her first career Big 12 Conference triumph by prevailing at Kansas on 3/27: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 6 strikeouts ... struck out seven and allowed just three hits over four innings during a 9-0 (5 inn.) win over Nicholls State (3/12) ... beat Texas State (2/28) behind four frames of scoreless, five-hit relief work ... punched out a career-high 12 batters and did not allow a hit while tossing her first collegiate complete game in an 8-0 (6 inn.) victory over UTSA (2/27) ... allowed just two runs on six hits in suffering a tough 2-1 loss to No. 3 UCLA (2/19) at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invite ... registered her first collegiate win after permitting one earned tally on six hits with two walks and nine K’s over 4.1 frames in an 8-4 triumph over McNeese State (2/16) ...
Travel Ball
The right-hander went 4-1 with a 0.18 earned run average (ERA) and 28 strikeouts over 32 innings in helping her Texas Bombers Gold squad to the 2019 Premier Girls Fastpitch 16-U Premier Nationals Championship Game … for her efforts, she was also named to the 2019 PGF Premier Nationals All-Tournament Team … during the 2019 summer travel ball campaign, Simpson posted a 1.20 ERA with 142 strikeouts over 109 innings of work ...
High School
A standout in-state pitching prospect, Simpson was listed at No. 4 overall (No. 2 overall pitcher) in Extra Inning Softball’s Extra Elite 100 as well as No. 9 in Softball America’s Top 100 player rankings … during a senior season run with Mont Belvieu (42-2 record) to the 2021 5A Texas State Championship and a No. 1 final ranking in the MaxPreps Top 25, Simpson registered a perfect 21-0 record, a 0.18 earned run average (ERA) and 271 strikeouts over 119 innings pitched while allowing just 36 total hits and three earned runs … she struck out 14 while earning most valuable player honors during the state championship game as Mont Belvieu topped Aledo, 4-1 … for her 2021 season efforts, she was named a MaxPreps Co-National Player of the Year as well as the Texas Gatorade Player of the Year, the All-Greater Houston Softball Pitcher of the Year and Texas Girls Coaches Association (TGCA) All-State … Simpson recorded a miniscule 0.16 ERA as a junior while striking out 104 batters in 42 frames … as a sophomore, she helped her squad to the 5A Texas State Tournament Regional Finals while posting 141 strikeouts over 67 innings of work ...
Personal
Daughter of Cory and Susan Simpson ... has one sibling, Dalton ... her father played baseball at Southwest Mississippi (1997) and then as part of the Atlanta Braves minor league system (1998-2001), while her mom played softball at Alvin Community College (1999) and Southeastern Louisiana (2000-02) … says her biggest inspiration in softball is to be better than her mom and beat her records regardless of where she plays … cites former Texas legends Cat Osterman and Christa Williams, former Washington ace Danielle Lawrie and her mom, Susan, as her favorite athletes ...
