BATON ROUGE, La. – Three freshmen LSU Tigers have been listed on D1Softball’s D100 Freshman Watchlist, including outfielder Rylie Johnson, utility players Ashlin Mowery and Ci’ella Pickett.
Including the three LSU Tigers, 41 athletes listed in the D100 represent the SEC. Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas have the most players listed, with five each; Alabama and Arkansas have four; and LSU is one of three programs with three players on the list (Georgia and Missouri).
Johnson is a three-time conference champion at Fredericksburg Christian High School in Spotsylvania, Va. She is a four-time Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association First Team Division II All-State selection and a two-time Virginia Christian Athletic Conference Player of the Year. Johnson is also a 2025 PGF Senior All-American and five-time champion in club softball with Virginia Unity.
Mowery, a utility player who also pitched in high school, comes to the Tigers from Lancaster High School in Lancaster, Ohio, where she was a four-time All-Ohio Capital Conference selection, the 2025 Central District Division I Player of the Year, the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, and the 2023 Offensive Player of the Year.
Pickett, a utility player from California, was tabbed a 2025 Athlete of the Year, the 2025 Citrus Belt League MVP, and a four-time Citrus Belt League First Team honoree. At Cajon High School, Pickett averaged .480 behind 86 hits, scored 63 runs, and had 36 RBIs. She also had 27 extra-base hits, including 14 doubles, eight home runs, and five triples.
The 2026 season begins with six games at Tiger Park in the 2026 Tiger Classic on Feb. 5-8, where LSU will welcome Illinois, Lamar, Nevada, and NC State. LSU opens its SEC schedule on the road at Tennessee on March 6-8 but will host SEC series against Texas A&M (March 14-16), Oklahoma (March 27-29), Ole Miss (April 17-19), and Auburn (April 30-May 2).
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