Texas Longhorns Softball Begins Season Strong Despite Small Misstep

The Texas Longhorns have officially made their way back to the diamond as head coach Mike White and his squad have taken the field for the first time in the 2026 season, looking to defend their spot at the top of the mountain.

The defending national champions saw their first action of the season just down I-35 in San Antonio, taking part in the UTSA Invitational, where from Feb. 6-8, the Longhorns would see action against the No. 9 Nebraska Cornhuskers twice, the No. 25 Washington Huskies twice, and the hosts, the UTSA Road Runners.

And the No. 1-ranked Longhorns have started their season with a solid step forward, despite suffering their first loss. After the five games over the weekend, the Longhorns end the first action of the season with a 4-1 record.

UTSA Invitational Recap

Texas Longhorns pitcher Teagan Kavan throws a pitch a Women's College World Series softball game against the Tennessee Volunteers. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Longhorns got their season started on Friday, taking on No. 9 Nebraska in what turned out to be a shootout between the two former conference rivals as Texas began its season defeating the Cornhuskers 15-10.

Retaking the field on Saturday, the Longhorns would gear up for a doubleheader against the two ranked teams in the UTSA Invitational. The Longhorns got their second day started with a victory in another high-scoring affair, beating the Huskies 11-6. And in game two of the day, the Longhorns suffered their first loss of the year, falling to the Cornhuskers 8-5.

And on the final day of the UTSA Invitational, Texas would take the field twice, once again matching up with the Huskies and closing out the weekend with a meeting against UTSA. The Longhorns would sweep their doubleheader, defeating the Huskies 5-0 in six innings and then taking care of the Road Runners 10-0 in five innings.

Looking at the Longhorns' Standouts

Texas Longhorns catcher Reese Atwood watches the ball after a hit during the fifth inning against the Oklahoma Sooners. | Brett Rojo-Imagn Images

The Longhorns' returning standouts have picked up right where they left off from a season ago. Here's a look at some of the top performances from the weekend.

Star pitcher Teagan Kavan had a solid start to her junior campaign, posting a 2-0 record, an ERA of 3, and 13 strikeouts in 11.2 innings after making three appearances and starting games against Nebraska on Friday and Washington on Sunday.

Kavan did not have the best start to the year, giving up five earned runs on seven hits while striking out three against Nebraska, but the Longhorns' ace followed that up with a three-hit, six-strikeout, complete-game shutout against Washington.

Resee Atwood has started her final season in the burnt orange on fire, totaling a .500 average at the plate along with three home runs and a team-high 10 RBIs. Atwood's home run against UTSA on Sunday tied the program's career home run record after hitting her 58th career home run.

Katie Stewart has the long ball working to begin the season as the junior leads the Longhorns in home runs through the first three games of the year, as she hit four over the weekend. Stewart also posted a .412 batting average and six RBIs.

And a returning Viviana Martinez has returned from a season-ending injury in 2025, with a quick start to 2026, recording a .357 batting average along with the second most RBIs on the squad with seven.

The Longhorns also had a pair of freshmen hitting their first career home runs in Caigan Crabtree and Hannah Wells, who also posted three RBIs. A two-way player, Wells also saw her first action in the circle of her career, where she touted a 1-1 record while striking out seven in 7.1 innings.