Chicago Bandits pitcher Lexi Kilfoyl won the 2026 AUSL All-Star Cup on Sunday. She finished first on the individual leaderboard with 1,072 points, 32 ahead of Baylee Klingler. The deciding points came from MVP voting after the final game.
The All-Star Cup ran four weekend series, 12 games in all, from Aug. 8 through Aug. 30 at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Ill. It used the Athletes Unlimited format. The top three players on the leaderboard after each series became captains and drafted new teams for the next one. Players earned points for team wins, for individual stats and through MVP votes from players and fans after every game.
How the final night played out
Sunday’s finale matched the top two players on the leaderboard. Team Klingler beat Team Kilfoyl 5-0, won every available inning and collected the game-win points. That moved Klingler eight points ahead.
Then the MVP votes were counted. Kilfoyl was voted MVP 2, worth 40 points, which put her back in first.
“I was shocked,” Kilfoyl said. “At the end of that game, it didn’t even feel like I should have won that, but they trusted me and said, ‘Just one outing doesn’t define you.'”
“To know that they had my back in that moment, that seals a deal for me, and I’d rather lose with them than lose with anyone else,” she said.
Kilfoyl went 3-1 with a 1.98 ERA over 17.1 innings, the fourth-best ERA in the event. The AUSL said her total included 162 stat points and 750 win points.
Klingler and Landry round out the podium
Klingler reached the top three after the first series and was a captain for the last three. Her teams went 5-1, and the league said her 840 win points led the field.
Her biggest moment came Saturday, Aug. 22, in Series 3. Her team trailed Team Landry by a run with a runner on second and one out left. Klingler hit a two-run walk-off home run off Sam Landry, the opposing captain. The AUSL counted it as a 230-point swing once the home run, the rolled-over inning points, the game win and her MVP 1 vote were added up.
Landry finished third with 908 points. She went 4-1 with a 1.21 ERA, the best record in the event, and threw four scoreless innings in the finale.
The rest of the top five were Hannah Flippen, who captained in Series 4, and Georgina Corrick.
Pitching took over
Scoring was low all month. The 12 games produced 55 runs combined. Six were decided by one run, and three were shutouts.
The All-Star Cup closed the league’s second season. The Utah Talons won the 2026 AUSL Championship in July.
Who won the 2026 AUSL All-Star Cup?
Lexi Kilfoyl of the Chicago Bandits, with 1,072 points. Baylee Klingler finished second with 1,040, and Sam Landry was third with 908.
How is the AUSL All-Star Cup champion decided?
Players earn individual points for team wins, individual statistics and postgame MVP votes. The player at the top of the leaderboard after the final game is the champion.
Where was the 2026 All-Star Cup played?
All 12 games were played Aug. 8-30, 2026, at Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Ill.
About the AUSL — The Athletes Unlimited Softball League is a professional softball league featuring six teams across major U.S. markets. Commissioner Kim Ng leads the league, whose games air on ESPN, ABC, CBS Sports Network and MLB Network.
Sources: AUSL: Lexi Kilfoyl Crowned 2026 AUSL All-Star Cup Champion; AUSL All-Star Cup guide; Series 4 draft results; AUSL All-Star Cup schedule and box scores. Featured photo: AUSL.
About Aspen Eighty
Aspen Eighty is a female-founded, independent digital publication covering the Athletes Unlimited Softball League. We publish news, season coverage, and player profiles for all six AUSL teams. Our mission is to amplify women’s professional softball and inspire the next generation of athletes.
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