Texas Softball Lands All-Big 12 Catcher Out of Transfer Portal

The Texas Longhorns have now more than likely wrapped up the celebrations for their second consecutive national championship after taking down the Texas Tech Red Raiders once again just over a week ago.

Now, head coach Mike White and the Longhorns have their eyes set on the 2027 season and the chance of creating more history with a shot at a three-peat. And to do so, the Longhorns will have to fill some holes on their roster as they head into next season.

Texas has a talented freshman class headed to the Forty Acres that will help close the gap; however, the Longhorns have used the transfer portal to patch one of those holes with an immediate-impact player.

Texas Adds Instant Starter at Key Position

Arizona State catcher Samantha Swan (32) celebrates after hitting a home run in the fourth inning of a Big 12 softball tournament game. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On Wednesday, D1 Softball's Justin McLeod reported that the Longhorns have added their first player from the transfer portal, and it's a major addition: Arizona State Sun Devils transfer catcher Samantha Swan choosing to play her final season of college softball in Austin.

The Longhorns add one of the top players available in the portal as Swan ranks as the No. 9 overall player in the transfer portal per Softball America's transfer portal rankings and was the No. 1 catcher available.

Swan was the reliable backstop of a Sun Devils team that reached the Super Regionals of the NCAA Tournament in 2026. The catcher had a breakout junior season playing in all 63 games of the season, starting in all but one ballgame, recording a .383 batting average, 1.151 OPS, to go along with 12 home runs and 55 RBIs.

For her 2026 season, Swan was named to the NFCA All-West Region Third Team
and was an All-Big 12 First Team, Unanimous Selection. Over her three seasons in Tempe, Swan played a total of 155 games with 141 starts and totaled a .322 batting average, .917 OPS to go along with 18 home runs and 86 home runs.

The commitment of Swan to the Longhorns is a homecoming for the Georgetown native, who Texas saw during its run to its second national title. Swan and the Sun Devils would meet the Longhorns in the Austin Super Regional, and in her return home, the catcher would shine.

In the three games of the Super Regional, Swan would be one of the top players on the field, going 4-10 at the plate with a home run and five RBI. Now, where her season ended in 2026 at Red and Charline McCombs Field, Swan will be playing her senior season on the same field.

The addition of Swan comes at an important time for the Longhorns, as Texas is set to lose its star catcher, Reese Atwood. While the Longhorns have an incoming freshman catcher in Mia Clemmer arriving in 2027, Swan is a veteran catcher who provides much-needed stability after the loss of Atwood.

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