Trisha Ford recaps No. 5 Texas A&M's 6-0 weekend at Davis Diamond

No. 5 Texas A&M softball began its 2025 campaign with a perfect 6-0 start at the Aggie Classic this past weekend. Third-year head coach Trisha Ford spoke on how the Aggies were able to find different ways to win, the depth of the roster and more.

Key notes from Trisha Ford interview

• We showed our fight this past weekend. I was very pleased with how we ended up with wins.  Our pitching got better as we went on. Emiley Kennedy had a solid outing when she was in. 
   
• Every part of our lineup got things going... Mac Barbara, KK Dement, Frankie Vrazel and Kramer Eschete had the game of her life. Strikeouts are going to happen offensively. What we did well was swinging at pitches in the zone. 
   
• Sydney Lessentine was around the zone. Her balls are dynamic. She didn't let the moment get to her. She kept going out there and kept throwing. What I really liked about her was that she responded really well. She sees the results in her game. I look forward to seeing her four years here in Aggieland.
   
• Mac Barbara is special. I tell her if you were a male, you would be a first-rounder. She is a professional hitter and full of life. When it comes to softball and hitting, she has a method to her madness. She has a plan. Writing down in her hitting book. End game, she has a hitting book. She's a super senior, so she kind of understands how pitchers are going to attack her.   
   
• Mac's been one of the first that I've coached that's had a hitting book. She has a couple of our players doing it now. Greatness breeds greatness. 
   
• Kramer Eschete’s catch — I'm blocked, so I can't see left field line, so I didn't know if Koko Wooley caught it or Kramer caught it. When I was able to watch it on video. I was like, "Man, that was big time.” Kramer cracks me up. She said, "I should've caught it the first time.” The No. 1 rule in the outfield is to catch the ball. 
   
• Emiley Kennedy continues to go out and handle the pressure. Last year, she came in, and she worked, but we knew about Kennedy, but I don't feel like the nation knew about Kennedy. Now, this year, everyone is prepping for Emiley Kennedy. She came in with high-stress pitches. Baylor, she came in and ended up getting that win. In the other two games, she pitched the whole game. 
   
• In the Baylor game, when we were down, in the dugout, I was angry. Coach Glenn Moore was emptying out his bench and putting in pinch hitters, and I had some choice words for Coach Jeff Harger. On our field, so I might have shared that with the team.
   
• The team is very calm. They're like, "Coach, we got this, we're gonna figure it out," Baylor’s Lillie Walker is very good. She played at Duke. She is just a crafty down baller with a good changeup. Eventually, we figured it out and made it a nightmare. 
   
• My parents reminded me of teachable moments when I called them. They're like, "Hey, ugly wins are better than ugly losses. And I'm like, "You're right."
   
• They have that in their toolbox. We made some uncharacteristic errors that forced some runs that shouldn't have been runs. We have a lot of ways to win a ball game, and I felt like this weekend in the Aggie Classic really showcased that ability.
   
• When I got here, they said, “If you put a product on here, the 12th Man loves bat & ball sports.” So this weekend, the Baylor game, I didn't realize in game, but both of my coaches were like, “There was standing room only up on the concourse.” I can't thank the 12th Man enough. We'll continue to work tirelessly for the 12th Man, and they do the same for us. 
   
• I think what impressed me with Mac and the freshman KK had a couple of miscues defensively and did not take that into the box. You don't normally see that with freshmen, and they get flustered. Amari Harper was playing right field and went out with an injury. Frankie Vrazel stepped in. For me, it shows a lot of maturity you don't see in a freshman. 
   
• Five games in four days. The depth is something I haven't had in a long time, and it's nice. Kennedy, we were able to use her in high-leverage situations, so they were still stressed that they didn't have seven innings against Baylor. We had opportunities to get Lessentine some innings. Kate Munnerlyn did a good job. Grace Sparks had moments of complete brilliance. We're going to continue to get better and better. We are going to win games in the circle in different ways.
   
• Clearwater is tricky because you look at it, and you're like, "Wichita State, Virginia, Oklahoma State and UCF.” UCF just beat Missouri last night. All of these teams are very capable of winning and beating us if we don't come in and play. I think three or four of the five were postseason teams last year, so that's the type of schedule we put together. If we play our game, we're gonna be alright. If we don't, things can go sideways.