Softball On SI Podcast: UNC’s Emily LeGette Talks Hot Season Start, Goals

The North Carolina Tar Heels are currently one of five teams left undefeated on the season, and junior infielder Emily LeGette has played a massive role in that success.

During the Tar Heel Invitational last weekend, LeGette was 11-for-18 with five home runs, three doubles, nine runs scored, and collected 14 RBIs across six games. Against NC Central on Feb. 19, she homered twice, including a grand slam in the third inning.

Named Softball On SI’s Co-Player of the Week, she joined episode three of the Softball On SI podcast to discuss her hot start to the season, team chemistry, and team goals for the season.

“This season for us has been amazing,” LeGette said during the podcast. “As a team coming in, we had half newcomers and half returners. Coach Smith made sure to do a really good job of blending us all together and getting a family aspect that she preaches so much. Now we all can’t get enough of each other.”

The transfer from Virginia Tech has surpassed all her season totals from 2025 and leads UNC with a .611 batting average, eight home runs, and 29 RBIs. With head coach Megan Smith Lyon in her third year at the helm, she snagged six transfers in the portal to attempt to make program history in 2026.

“Our main goal is to get to 40 wins, but our goal is to get to Super Regionals for the first time,” LeGette said during the podcast.“Since the first practice, it’s been our goal. Every little detail we do is preparing us to get to that extra step.”

As a newcomer, LeGette was forced to acclimate to UNC’s unique home run tradition, where the batter must dive into her teammates at home plate and get thrown in the air. She’s had ample opportunity to get the strategy down, but it wasn’t easy at first.

“I’ve got the strategy down now,” LeGette said during the podcast. “My first few home runs, I was so nervous. My first home run in the fall, I completely forgot about it until I got to third and look up and (my teammates) were all just standing there with their arms out, and I was like ‘Oh God’. I jumped maybe a foot into it, and I don’t think I got lifted off the ground. All cool points were lost after that.”

There’s an art form to UNC’s home run celebration.

Just ask @EmilyLegette, who botched her first one in the fall but has mastered it with 8 HR’s in 14 games to start 2026. https://t.co/l7YNmNS78U pic.twitter.com/rOc8ZblAQs
— Softball OnSI (@SoftballOnSI) February 25, 2026

Aside from the exclusive interview with LeGette, this week’s podcast touched on the viral Oklahoma controversy, NCAA stat leaders, weekly award winners, and a look at the growing national spotlight on the sport.

Subscribe to Softball On SI’s YouTube channel for more content across the 2026 season.

Recommended Links