SB: Trio named to Preseason All-SLC teams; season opens next Friday

1/30/2025 12:38:00 PM

Savage, Garcia and Barba named; Huskies picked seventh in preseason poll

Houston Christian University's Haylie Savage, AB Garcia and Karlie Barba were selected to the Southland Conference Preseason All-Conference teams on Thursday, as the league announced those accolades as well as the preseason poll for the 2025 season which starts next weekend.

It is the third straight season Savage has earned preseason honors and second in a row for Garcia, while Barba was selected preceding her first campaign with the Huskies. Savage was named as a second-team utility player, Garcia as a second-team outfielder and Barba as the second team designated player.

Savage was named to the All-Southland Conference team for the third straight season last year, as well as picking up All-Academic honors for the second consecutive campaign. She took over at shortstop for the final 29 games of the season after a season-ending injury to starter Maggie Childs and earned utility honors after being named All-SLC as a third baseman her first two seasons.

The senior from Angleton, Texas started every game last year for the Huskies for the third consecutive season while establishing new single-season personal-bests in runs scored, doubles, homers, walks and stolen bases. Second on the club with her .301 batting average, Savage hit eight homers and drove in 28, both team-highs. She also led the team in runs, doubles, walks, OPS and SLG% and was second on the team with 11 multi-hit games and ranked third in the Southland in homers, seventh in slugging, runs scored and doubles and 10^th in OPS and RBI.

She enters her final go-around on Beechnut Street approaching the Top 10 in nearly every major hitting category. Savage needs one homer, eight RBI and two doubles to hit those leaderboards and is also closing in on the all-time lists for hits, at-bats, walks, runs and games played.

AB Garcia battled through nagging injuries much of the 2024 campaign, but still managed to start all 46 games she played in for the second straight season. It is the second time to pick up preseason honors for Garcia, who was named the Southland Freshman of the Year and All-SLC after the 2023 season.

The junior outfielder from Cypress, Texas fought off a rough start to the season to finish with a .297 batting average. She had a career-best 11-game hitting streak as part of a 19-game stretch where she batted .359 to raise her average back up over. 300. She finished the season with 16 stolen bases in 18 attempts, giving her 39 for her career and placing her in a tie for fifth all-time. She is just six stolen bases away from moving all the way up to second on the all-time swipes chart, and is 43 hits away from moving into the Top 10 in that category.

Barba enters her first season in the blue and orange after spending two seasons in the blue and orange of Galveston College. The Houston native and Dobie High School product was a two-time All-Conference and two-time All-Region selection as both a designated player and pitcher. She will continue in the role of DP for the Huskies while also seeing time at first base.

She was named to both the NFCA and NJCAA Division I All-America teams last year after batting .432 with 27 homers and 80 RBI and leading the Whitecaps to a No. 17 national ranking and fifth-place finish at the NJCAA National Tournament. She ended her two seasons on the the island with a .403 average, 38 homers, 134 RBI and a 24-7 record in the circle.

HCU was selected to finish seventh in the 10-team preseason poll. Defending Southland champion Southeastern Louisiana was picked to finish first, finishing one point ahead of McNeese in second, with both schools picking up nine first-place votes. Incarnate Word picked up the other two first-place votes in third place.

McNeese led the way with five preseason selections, including last year's SLC Freshman of the Year Alexis Dibbley. Southeastern, Lamar and Nicholls with four apiece. Along with HCU, Incarnate Word had three players named including reigning SLC Player of the Year Victoria Altamirano. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi had one player chosen.

Mary-Ellen Hall returns for her 34th season in the dugout of her alma mater after claiming her 900th career win last year. HCU return nine players off last year's 23-27 club that advanced to the Southland Conference Tournament, including Savage, Garcia and senior outfielder Maddy Bailey. An 11-player recruiting class features five transfers and six rookies.

The preseason poll is voted on by head coaches and sports information directors in the conference, with coaches selecting the preseason all-conference team.

The Huskies open the 2025 campaign next weekend with four games at home as part of a combined tournament with Houston and Lamar. HCU hosts St. John's and New Mexico on Friday, followed by two games on Saturday against New Mexico and Louisiana-Monroe. Those are the only games at Husky Field until March 14-15, when the ladies return home to host Southeastern Louisiana in a three-game SLC series.

Tournaments over three straight weekends follow the home opening quartet of games. HCU plays in the Tarleton State Whataburger Classic, the ULM Warhawk Invitational and finally the Mardi Gras Mambo in Youngsville, Louisiana before firing up Southland play at Northwestern State on March 7-8.

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Savage, Garcia and Barba named; Huskies picked seventh in preseason poll

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