Bulldog Trio Named To Softball America Freshman Watch List
January 12, 2026 | Softball
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State's Kinley Keller, Brinkley Moreton and Gabby Schaeffer were named to Softball America's Freshman Watch List on Monday morning. Keller was also previously named to the D1Softball D100 Freshman Watch List last week.
Keller played travel ball with Texas Bombers Gold, winning the 2024 Alliance Fastpitch 18U National Championship and finishing as runners-up in 2025. She hit over .300 on the travel circuit every year of her high school career. The outfielder played at Davenport High School in New Braunfels, Texas, where she holds the school's career batting average (.546) and career home run (54) records.
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As a senior, she broke school records in batting average (.580), on-base percentage (.682), slugging percentage (1.556), home runs (18), RBIs (71) and runs scored (56). She was unanimously named the District MVP and selected to the Texas High School Coaches Association Super Elite 4A Team while earning MVP honors in the Austin Area High School All-Star Game.
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Moreton pitched this summer in The Alliance Fastpitch All-Star Game and went head-to-head with Keller at the 2025 Colorado Fireworks National Championship. She was considered the No. 23 player in the class by Extra Inning Softball and the No. 44 player by Perfect Game when she signed. A two-way threat, she struck out more than 800 batters in her high school career and set the Arkansas single-season state record for RBIs with 65 as a freshman.
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Schaeffer, an infielder from Monroe, New York, won back-to-back state titles at Monroe-Woodbury High School and hit over .400 every season. She played travel ball with Rock Gold Manetta, hitting over .400 with the club and placing third at the 2022 PGF Platinum Nationals. The freshman excels defensively as well, winning her club's Golden Glove in 2021.
The Bulldogs will open the season next month at the Getterman Classic in Waco, Texas. State will face Baylor on Opening Day on Thursday, Feb. 5, at 6:30 p.m. CT. MSU's home opener is set for 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10 against Southern Miss.
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For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
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Keller played travel ball with Texas Bombers Gold, winning the 2024 Alliance Fastpitch 18U National Championship and finishing as runners-up in 2025. She hit over .300 on the travel circuit every year of her high school career. The outfielder played at Davenport High School in New Braunfels, Texas, where she holds the school's career batting average (.546) and career home run (54) records.
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As a senior, she broke school records in batting average (.580), on-base percentage (.682), slugging percentage (1.556), home runs (18), RBIs (71) and runs scored (56). She was unanimously named the District MVP and selected to the Texas High School Coaches Association Super Elite 4A Team while earning MVP honors in the Austin Area High School All-Star Game.
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Moreton pitched this summer in The Alliance Fastpitch All-Star Game and went head-to-head with Keller at the 2025 Colorado Fireworks National Championship. She was considered the No. 23 player in the class by Extra Inning Softball and the No. 44 player by Perfect Game when she signed. A two-way threat, she struck out more than 800 batters in her high school career and set the Arkansas single-season state record for RBIs with 65 as a freshman.
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Schaeffer, an infielder from Monroe, New York, won back-to-back state titles at Monroe-Woodbury High School and hit over .400 every season. She played travel ball with Rock Gold Manetta, hitting over .400 with the club and placing third at the 2022 PGF Platinum Nationals. The freshman excels defensively as well, winning her club's Golden Glove in 2021.
The Bulldogs will open the season next month at the Getterman Classic in Waco, Texas. State will face Baylor on Opening Day on Thursday, Feb. 5, at 6:30 p.m. CT. MSU's home opener is set for 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 10 against Southern Miss.
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For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
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