Edwards, Heavener Named to 2025 NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Top 25 List
Tori Edwards and Jayden Heavener are the program’s sixth and seventh players to be selected to the NFCA Freshman of the Year Top 25 list.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Tori Edwards and Jayden Heavener appear on the 2025 NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Top 25 list announced Friday morning.
This year’s finalists include 24 different universities and 10 NCAA Division I conferences. The SEC leads the way with eight honorees.
LSU is the only program with two honorees on the Top 25 list, bringing the program’s total to seven players tabbed to the list since the award’s inception in 2014. The last time LSU had two players represented in the same season was 2015 when Carly Hoover and Allie Walljasper were selected. LSU has never had a player named the NFCA Freshman of the Year.
Among freshmen in the nation this season, Edwards ranks No. 3 with 64 RBI and a .512 on-base percentage, No. 4 with 16 home runs and a .867 slugging percentage, and No. 8 with a .415 batting average.
Heavener ranks No. 3 among freshmen pitchers with 9.3 strikeouts per seven innings and No. 4 with 125 strikeouts. Heavener began her career with a perfect game against Charlotte in the season opener on Feb. 7 and has five games with 10 or more strikeouts this season.
The NFCA will trim the list to 10 players on May 8, and three finalists will be revealed on May 22. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 27, before the 2025 NCAA Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
The NFCA selected the list of 25. The NFCA Division I All-America Committee will select the top 10, top three, and winner. Nominated student-athletes remain in consideration for the Top 10 selection.
The NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year award honors outstanding athletic achievement among Division I freshmen softball student-athletes. In 2025, the NFCA will name a Freshman of the Year across all NCAA divisions and in the NAIA.
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