National Champion Texas Softball Strengthens Roster With Transfer Catcher

The Longhorns graduated Reese Atwood and found familiar name to replace her behind the plate.

Samantha Swan is joining the Longhorns. | Arizona State Athletics

Just a week after winning a second-straight national title, Texas softball and head coach Mike White are ready to build for the future. 

Former Arizona State catcher Samantha Swan announced on social media Wednesday afternoon that she is officially transferring to Austin and will fulfill her final season of eligibility as a graduate student-athlete. 

“I’m Coming Home! God is good, I couldn’t be more excited to be back in the Lone Star State!” Swan wrote on X. 

I’M COMING HOME!! 🧡🤍 God is good, I couldn’t be more excited to be back in the Lone Star State! pic.twitter.com/Tl1eJZpp5w

— samantha swan (@samswan26325464) June 10, 2026

The Georgetown, Texas native spent the last three seasons with the Sun Devils behind the dish and is coming off an incredible breakout 2026 season. Playing in all 63 games and assisting the team to a Super Regional appearance, she put up a .383 batting average, a 1.151 OPS, 12 homers, and 55 RBIs. 

Across her career with the Sun Devils, Swan played in a total of 155 games, making 141 starts, and achieving a .322 batting average and a .917 OPS, with 18 home runs and 86 RBIs. In 2025, she collected a .986 fielding percentage with 399 putouts, 28 assists, and just six errors in 433 total chances, while throwing out nine would-be base stealers. 

Swan ended her career in Tempe as an NFCA All-West Region Third Team honoree and an All-Big 12 First Team honoree. She was also named NFCA National Player of the Week in April after going 9-for-10, while setting single-game career highs in RBIs (6) and home runs (2) against UCF. 

HIT THE SWAN 😈@samswan26325464 gives us the lead 🫡

T6 ASU 3 | Utah 2 pic.twitter.com/tKMSsplXpP

— Sun Devil Softball (@ASUSoftball) April 12, 2025

Ironically enough, the last time Swan saw the Longhorns was at McCombs Field during the Super Regionals when the Sun Devils fought in three hard games to advance to the Women’s College World Series for the first time since 2018. 

Arizona State had a shocking upset in game one to take down the defending champions, but Texas bounced back with two straight games to move on. Swan was one of the top performers of the games for ASU, going 4-for-10 at the plate with a homer and five RBIs. 

Swan now joins Texas as the team loses star catcher and slugger, Reese Atwood, to graduation. The team does have Mia Clemmer, an incoming freshman catcher, on the roster. Still, Swan’s veteran experience should be what pitchers Teagan Kavan, Hannah Wells, and Brenlee Gonzales need with Atwood gone.  

In the past, White has tended to stay on the shorter side when utilizing the transfer portal, but since his picks of Kaiah Altmeyer, Gonzales, and Taylor Anderson worked out so well this season, it won’t be shocking if Swan isn’t the only one in 2026.