Photo by: Jade Hewitt/Athletes Unlimited
Bulldog Players And Coaches Prepare For Second AUSL Season
June 08, 2026 | Softball
STARKVILLE – Opening Day for the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) is just around the corner. All six teams will open the 2026 season on Tuesday, June 9.
Mississippi State will be represented by Peja Goold on the Oklahoma City Spark and Sierra Sacco-Ferrie and Mia Davidson with the Portland Cascade this year. In addition to the Bulldog players, a pair of coaches will spend their summers in the league as well. Alyssa Loza will join Goold and the Spark as an assistant coach, while Taryne Mowatt-McKinney will serve as the Chicago Bandits' pitching coach.
The Spark and Cascade will both make their AUSL debuts as the league's first expansion clubs this year. The Spark's first season of operations was in 2023 as an independent club before joining the AUSL in November. Former Bulldogs Chloe Malau'ulu and Fa Leilua have previously played for the franchise. The Cascade were created specifically as an AUSL expansion team, and Sacco-Ferrie and Davidson will be members of the club's first roster.
Goold will open her rookie season after being selected in the second round of the 2026 AUSL College Draft. She played an instrumental role in guiding the Bulldogs to their first Women's College World Series this year, earning Second Team All-America honors from Softball America. She paced the club with a team-leading 26 starts in the circle and a 2.36 ERA in her final collegiate season.
The Stockton, California, native was tabbed USA Today Sports' SEC Newcomer of the Year and led MSU with eight shutouts, which ranked fourth nationally. Goold closed her college career with just shy of 650 career strikeouts and a career record of 61-32.
Sacco-Ferrie returns to the AUSL for her second professional season after playing her rookie year for the champion Talons in 2025. When the Talons moved to Utah as the AUSL planted its teams in permanent home cities, she was selected by the Portland Cascade in the league's expansion draft.
Sacco-Ferrie posted a phenomenal rookie campaign that saw her earn AUSL All-Defensive Team honors as one of just two league outfielders with a perfect fielding percentage. She hit .313 over 20 games, primarily out of the leadoff spot for the league champs, while launching three homers, including the first long ball in league history. Following the AUSL regular season, Sacco-Ferrie finished among the top 30 in the AUSL All-Star Cup, reaching base in all but two games in the 10-game series and ranking fifth among rookies in stat points. She then made her Team USA debut in in January.
Davidson has previously played three seasons with Athletes Unlimited under its unique individual scoring format prior to the AUSL embracing traditional teams. She finished as high as third in the 2023 AUX season and was taken by the Bandits with the first pick in the fifth round of the 2025 AUSL Draft; however, she missed all of last year due to an injury. In her last North American competition, Davidson won her first professional team championship in Liga Mexicana de Softbol with the Diablos Rojos.
Davidson's AUSL season will be delayed as she concludes her current playing season with Denso Bright Pegasus, which is currently second in the East League in Japan's Diamond League. She will join the Cascade during the Diamond League's mid-season break following games on June 21.
The Cascade open the season at 4 p.m. CT on Tuesday on the road against the Carolina Blaze with the game airing on CBS Sports Network. Oklahoma City hosts the Texas Volts at 6 p.m. on ESPN2. Mowatt-McKinney's Bandits close out Opening Day at the Utah Talons in a championship series rematch at 8 p.m. on ESPN2.
Opening series will continue through Wednesday. The second set of series (June 13-16) will begin on Saturday and pit Goold and Loza against Mowatt-McKinney as the Bandits host the Spark. Sacco-Ferrie will revisit her former club when the Talons host the Cascade.
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Mississippi State will be represented by Peja Goold on the Oklahoma City Spark and Sierra Sacco-Ferrie and Mia Davidson with the Portland Cascade this year. In addition to the Bulldog players, a pair of coaches will spend their summers in the league as well. Alyssa Loza will join Goold and the Spark as an assistant coach, while Taryne Mowatt-McKinney will serve as the Chicago Bandits' pitching coach.
The Spark and Cascade will both make their AUSL debuts as the league's first expansion clubs this year. The Spark's first season of operations was in 2023 as an independent club before joining the AUSL in November. Former Bulldogs Chloe Malau'ulu and Fa Leilua have previously played for the franchise. The Cascade were created specifically as an AUSL expansion team, and Sacco-Ferrie and Davidson will be members of the club's first roster.
Goold will open her rookie season after being selected in the second round of the 2026 AUSL College Draft. She played an instrumental role in guiding the Bulldogs to their first Women's College World Series this year, earning Second Team All-America honors from Softball America. She paced the club with a team-leading 26 starts in the circle and a 2.36 ERA in her final collegiate season.
The Stockton, California, native was tabbed USA Today Sports' SEC Newcomer of the Year and led MSU with eight shutouts, which ranked fourth nationally. Goold closed her college career with just shy of 650 career strikeouts and a career record of 61-32.
Sacco-Ferrie returns to the AUSL for her second professional season after playing her rookie year for the champion Talons in 2025. When the Talons moved to Utah as the AUSL planted its teams in permanent home cities, she was selected by the Portland Cascade in the league's expansion draft.
Sacco-Ferrie posted a phenomenal rookie campaign that saw her earn AUSL All-Defensive Team honors as one of just two league outfielders with a perfect fielding percentage. She hit .313 over 20 games, primarily out of the leadoff spot for the league champs, while launching three homers, including the first long ball in league history. Following the AUSL regular season, Sacco-Ferrie finished among the top 30 in the AUSL All-Star Cup, reaching base in all but two games in the 10-game series and ranking fifth among rookies in stat points. She then made her Team USA debut in in January.
Davidson has previously played three seasons with Athletes Unlimited under its unique individual scoring format prior to the AUSL embracing traditional teams. She finished as high as third in the 2023 AUX season and was taken by the Bandits with the first pick in the fifth round of the 2025 AUSL Draft; however, she missed all of last year due to an injury. In her last North American competition, Davidson won her first professional team championship in Liga Mexicana de Softbol with the Diablos Rojos.
Davidson's AUSL season will be delayed as she concludes her current playing season with Denso Bright Pegasus, which is currently second in the East League in Japan's Diamond League. She will join the Cascade during the Diamond League's mid-season break following games on June 21.
The Cascade open the season at 4 p.m. CT on Tuesday on the road against the Carolina Blaze with the game airing on CBS Sports Network. Oklahoma City hosts the Texas Volts at 6 p.m. on ESPN2. Mowatt-McKinney's Bandits close out Opening Day at the Utah Talons in a championship series rematch at 8 p.m. on ESPN2.
Opening series will continue through Wednesday. The second set of series (June 13-16) will begin on Saturday and pit Goold and Loza against Mowatt-McKinney as the Bandits host the Spark. Sacco-Ferrie will revisit her former club when the Talons host the Cascade.
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
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