South Carolina Softball Schedule 2024: What To Know

An influx of newcomers helped South Carolina softball end an NCAA Tournament drought in 2023. The Gamecocks look for more in 2024.

Feb 9, 2024 by Kyle Kensing

South Carolina Softball Schedule 2024: What To Know

South Carolina came into the 2023 season having missed the previous two completed seasons' NCAA Tournament. But thanks to just the second 40-plus-win season over the last 19 years in Columbia, the Gamecocks returned to the postseason.

With some of the players key to last season's turnaround back in garnet-and-black for 2024, South Carolina looks to make noise in the always-loaded Southeastern Conference.

The Gamecocks begin the campaign ranked No. 23 in the nation, and with a prime opportunity to make early moves up the polls thanks to their place in the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge.

South Carolina joins an impressive field that includes 2023 College World Series participant Utah, the Gamecocks' first opponent South of the Border.

Before South Carolina heads to Mexico, get to know more about the 2024 team.

How Did South Carolina Softball Do In 2023?

South Carolina softball finished the 2023 season at 40-22 and advanced to the Tallahassee Regional of the NCAA Tournament. The Gamecocks fell just a run shy of bouncing the No. 3 overall seed Seminoles and moving onto the Super Regional.

Last season's record is no small milestone for South Carolina softball.

Following a run of success that included a 63-win peak in 1997, South Carolina put together the last of five straight 40-plus-win seasons in 2003. The Gamecocks did not reach that mark again until 2018, and 2023 was the first 40-win season in the five years since.

Who Coaches South Carolina Softball?

Beverly Smith is the head coach of South Carolina softball. Smith was tabbed to replace program legend Joyce Compton beginning with the 2011 season.

After South Carolina hit some tough times in the latter half of the 2000s, Smith coached the Gamecocks to the NCAA Tournament for the first of seven consecutive appearances beginning in 2013.

Has South Carolina Ever Won The Women’s College World Series?

No, South Carolina has never won the Women's College World Series.

The Gamecocks made three trips to the Women's College World Series during Joyce Compton's remarkable tenure: 1983, 1989 and 1997.

South Carolina's appearance in 1997 ended with losses to Washington and Michigan.

Notable Returning Players

Bailey Betenbaugh, P

Bailey Betenbaugh is tops among returning South Carolina pitchers. She will again be a pivotal member of the pitching rotation as the likely No. 2 to transfer Alana Vawter.

Betenbaugh compiled a 2.41 ERA, second-lowest on the roster, with a 9-3 record over 26 appearances and nine starts. Her .219 opponent batting average was second-lowest behind only Gobourne, and she struck out 38 batters in 58 innings of work.

Brooke Blankenship, SS

Florida State transfer Brooke Blankenship made an impression immediately upon joining South Carolina. The shortstop hit .300 over 140 at-bats in 2023 and made the most of getting aboard with 11 steals.

Defensively, Blankenship had 81 putouts and 106 assists, while fielding at a near-96 percent rate starting every game at short for the Gamecocks.

Notable Newcomers

Alana Vawter, P

One of the most impactful transfers ahead of the 2024 season is Alana Vawter, the 2023 All-American, and a key to Stanford's run to the Women's College World Series.

Vawter joins the Gamecocks after delivering three full seasons of sub-2.00 ERAs for the Cardinal. In 2023, Vawter went 21-8 with a 1.81 ERA, worked 190 innings—down from 2021 and 2022 when she logged 427 2/3 innings combined—and struck out 155 batters to give her 527 punch-outs in her career.

Vawter will immediately be among the very best pitchers in the SEC. She provides South Carolina with a dominant ace.

Reganne Bennett, P/INF

One of the nation's highest-rated prospects in the 2023 high school graduating class, Reganne Bennett comes to South Carolina by way of Michigan, where she was the state's Gatorade Player of the Year.

Bennett was an outstanding hitter at the high school level and a lights-out pitching. Her versatility should result in Bennett contributing in some significant capacity as a first-year Gamecock.