Taylor Edwards, the Carolina Blaze‘s primary catcher in the AUSL’s first season, was inducted into the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday, Oct. 2. The Class of 2026 was recognized the next day at the Nebraska-Maryland football game in Lincoln.
Edwards caught for the Huskers from 2011 to 2014. She retired from professional softball after the 2025 AUSL season.
Seventeen program records
Edwards was a four-year starter at Nebraska and left with 17 program records. As a freshman she homered in six straight games, which tied an NCAA record, and earned third-team All-America honors, the first Husker catcher to be named an All-American. She was a two-time All-American in all.
In 2013 she helped Nebraska reach the Women’s College World Series and made the all-tournament team. As a senior she was the NFCA Division I Catcher of the Year and the Huskers won their first Big Ten regular-season title. Nebraska has retired her jersey number.
Nebraska announced the seven-member class on June 18. The others: baseball’s Matt Hopper, bowler Cassandra Leuthold, football’s Dean Steinkuhler, volleyball’s Amber Holmquist, track and field’s Ineta Radevica and longtime volleyball head coach John Cook.
Every version of pro softball
The Pennsylvania Rebellion took Edwards eighth overall in the 2014 National Pro Fastpitch draft. She played four NPF seasons and won three titles, two with the Chicago Bandits and one with the Scrap Yard Dawgs. She spent two more seasons with Scrap Yard Fastpitch as an independent team and two in Japan with Denso-Bright Pegasus of the Japan Diamond League.
Edwards played in every Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball Championship season, the event now known as the All-Star Cup, and in the AUX competitions. She was named to the All-Defensive Team in 2022. With Team USA she won gold at the WBSC World Championship and the USA Softball International Cup, and she was an alternate on the 2020 Tokyo Olympic team.
The Blaze selected her in the 11th round of the AUSL’s first draft on Jan. 30, 2025, and she was their primary catcher that summer. She announced her retirement after the season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Taylor Edwards?
A catcher who played at Nebraska from 2011 to 2014, then more than a decade of professional softball in the NPF, with Scrap Yard, in Japan, with Athletes Unlimited and with the Carolina Blaze in the AUSL’s 2025 season.
When was Taylor Edwards inducted into the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame?
Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, with recognition at the Nebraska-Maryland football game on Oct. 3. She is part of a seven-member Class of 2026.
Is Taylor Edwards still playing in the AUSL?
No. She retired after the 2025 season, her only AUSL season, with the Carolina Blaze.
About the AUSL. The Athletes Unlimited Softball League is a professional softball league with six teams across the U.S. Commissioner Kim Ng leads the league, whose games air on ESPN, ABC, CBS Sports Network and MLB Network.
Sources: AUSL: Taylor Edwards inducted into Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame; Nebraska Athletics: 2026 Hall of Fame class announced; AUSL: Taylor Edwards retires; AUSL player transaction log; 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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