Former Oregon Softball Gold Glove Winner Announces Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Paige Sinicki was at the peak of her softball career in 2025 before she received some of the hardest news one could ever hear.

After posting career highs in nearly every offensive category, a Big Ten championship, a Women’s College World Series appearance, a pick in the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) draft, and graduating with a major in human psychology, Sinicki came forward on social media to reveal a Stage 2 breast cancer diagnosis.

“This past year, I would say I went from the best moments of my life to the hardest,” Sinicki said in the video. “The Big Ten championship, the Women’s College World Series, graduated, played pro, and was re-drafted to play in the AUSL. Then, on Nov. 11, I was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer.”

So incredibly grateful for my family and friends who have been with me and continue to be with me every step of the way 🩷 Thank you God for bringing me to Utah where I have and will continue to get the best support from the best doctors at the HCI! #ONE4ONE 🩷🎗️ pic.twitter.com/3NOHicw5jy
— Paige Sinicki (@paige_sinicki) June 7, 2026

The All-Big Ten First Team honoree and Big Ten All-Defensive Team honoree is refusing to let this setback get in the way of her future professional career. The infielder was drafted by the Portland Cascade in the AUSL Allocation Draft, all while working as a graduate assistant at the University of Utah.

Sinicki claims the training isn’t stopping while undergoing cancer treatment.

“I choose to attack each moment with gratitude, heart, growth and grit, because I know that’s what it takes for me to beat this,” Sinicki said in the video. “I get to write my story, and I choose to write it this way, because no struggle is big enough to take you away from what you want most. Cancer has not and will not take away from the things I love.”

Sinicki left Oregon with 211 career starts at shortstop and is tied for seventh in program history with 65 career starts and nine career triples. Her senior season saw a .376 batting average, 14 doubles, 6 triples, 8 home runs, 50 RBIs, and a .652 slugging percentage. She led the team with 116 assists and was second in the Big Ten conference in steals and triples, while landing in fourth on Oregon’s single-season runs list (61).

As a junior in 2024, Sinicki became the first player in program history to win the NFCA Rawlings Gold Glove award when she led the Pac-12 with a .975 fielding percentage at shortstop, and ranked third with 105 assists. She was also just the second Duck to be named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.

Paige Sinicki with a hustle play and throw, keeping the lead at four.

M5 | Ducks 5, Beavers 1

📺 Pac-12 Oregon
📷 https://t.co/FZPgxa1xFk #GoDucks | #Version6 pic.twitter.com/fSfz1sQzkh
— Oregon Softball (@OregonSB) April 20, 2024

“Looking back at all the highs I experienced before this diagnosis, I am reminded that life isn’t linear,” Sinicki said in the video. “God can put your highest of highs right next to your lowest of lows. But in both of those moments, there is still peace and joy.”

The AUSL season is set to start on Tuesday, with the Cascade facing the North Carolina Blaze in Durham.

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