Must-See Leadoff Inside-the-Park Home Run

Florida International's Kally Meredith lit some early fireworks on Friday.

FIU softball's Kally Meredith led off a game with a must-see highlight. | FIU Athletics

Florida International won its first three games to start the 2026 season, but it's what happened to lead off Game 2 that has captured the internet's attention.

The Panthers, who were playing Texas A&M Corpus Christi for a second straight contest, sent Kally Meredith to the plate, and what followed is something that has to be seen to be believed.

The Islanders shifted the defense and had the outfield shaded to the left, hoping to get the left-handed Meredith to ground out or pop out to the left side. Instead, she roped an inside pitch down the right field line and sped around the bases, scoring on an inside-the-park home run.

LEADOFF INSIDE THE PARK HOMER FOR KALLY 😱 pic.twitter.com/0Y0OgANR1T

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) February 6, 2026

In the scorebook, the hit went down as a home run, tying Meredith's career total of one home run on just the second day of the season. Her first career and only other home run came against North Dakota on March 2, 2024.

Meredith, known for her speed, set an All-Time program record for stolen bases in a season with 40 last season. She also earned Second Team All-CUSA honors as an outfielder.

As a freshman in 2024, the Wisconsin native was honored with All-CUSA Second Team and CUSA All-Freshman selections.

Through FIU's first three games of the 2026 season, Meredith was 6-for-11 with four runs scored, one home run, and one run batted in. She was also a perfect 1-for-1 in stolen bases.

Panthers Down Islanders

After Meredith scored the first run of the contest, the Islanders knotted the game at 1-1.

However the Panthers erupted for eight runs in the third inning, en route to a 10-2 win.

Meredith was one of five FIU players to record multi-hit games. Meredith finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Zamya McBurroughs led all hitters, going 3-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored, and four RBIs. Kennedy Byrd, Leah Clark, and Riley Silvers each had two hits.

Byrd earned the victory in the circle, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks. She struck out one.

FIU Upsets Louisville

FIU fans had plenty to celebrate in the nightcap against Louisville. The Panthers used a four-run sixth inning to down the Cardinals 7-5, marking FIU's first-ever win over Louisville and first win since March 12, 2024, over an ACC opponent. 

Freshman Meagan Villazon earned her first collegiate start for FIU in a marquee matchup against the Cardinals. She pitched 6.0 innings and surrendered just three earned runs, striking out three. J'dah Grigorie then came on in relief of Villazon and finished off the win for her first career save. 

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