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Elam and Spearman selected to 2025 All-CUSA Preseason Softball Team.
Source: NMSU Athletics, Conference USA
Cover Photo By Matthew Knope for NMSU: Courtesy
DALLAS – Conference USA revealed its 2025 Softball Preseason Awards on Thursday, Jan. 23. 15 student-athletes earned league-wide recognition, including Devin Elam and Desirae Spearman of NM State. The Aggie duo was named to the 2024 All-CUSA First Team after leading the Crimson & White to a 30-win campaign last spring. In the same release, the league’s coaches picked NM State to finish third, only behind WKU and Liberty.
A season ago, Elam and Spearman combined for 92 hits, 23 home runs and a total of 37 extra-base hits. The pair accounted for 76 starts across 79 outings, tallying 239 at-bats. In the batter’s box, the pair of outfielders recorded a combined .385 batting average while reaching base on .445 of all at-bats, mashing their way to a .741 slugging percentage and a 1.186 OPS. Spearman was tied for the team lead with 43 RBIs while Elam ranked second with 36, racking up 31.7% of all runs batted in for Kathy Rodolph‘s offense in 2024.
Devin Elam | Jr. | OF | Long Beach, Calif. | 2025 All-CUSA Preseason Team (OF)
- 2024 All-CUSA First Team (Outfielder)
- CUSA Player of the Week (April 15, 2024)
Once 2024 conference action began, Devin Elam was one of the hottest hitters in the country. The sophomore was named CUSA Player of the Week on April 15 as she began what finished as a 14-game hitting streak to close the regular season. In CUSA action, she hit .449, ranking second in the league. Over the course of the season, she had 47 hits, a .405 average and a 1.021 OPS. In league play, she ranked third in hits (31), fifth in RBIs (21) and eighth in OPS (1.089).
After April 6 – the Aggies’ second game at Jax State – Elam posted 19 RBIs in her next 16 appearances. Elam started each of those outings in the cleanup spot, guiding NM State’s offense to the No. 4 seed in the CUSA Championship, where the Crimson & White advanced to the penultimate game before falling to eventual champion Liberty.
In last season’s series against FIU, the Long Beach, Calif., native racked up five RBIs and seven hits. Her .636 batting average was supplemented with a pair of doubles as the second-year Aggie posted a 1.454 OPS to lead the Crimson & White to a sweep over the Panthers. The 5-foot-9 outfielder capped off her week with the impressive three-game showing after tallying four hits and many RBIs with a home run against (RV) Arizona on that Tuesday, April 9. Through the five-game span, the South Torrance High School product amassed 11 hits, nine RBIs and four extra-bases hits en route to tallying 17 total bases for an OPS of 1.555 between a conference series and a doubleheader against the Wildcats. The next day (April 15), Conference USA named Elam its Player of the Week as she became the second Aggie to earn the honor.
Rachel Roupe (Liberty)
Devin Elam’s Conference Rival
Last year, Roupe paced CUSA in slugging (.798), on-base percentage (.514), OPS (1.312), doubles (17), home runs (17) and walks (45). Her performance landed her a spot on the NFCA All-Region Team.
Desirae Spearman | So. | P/UTL | El Paso, Texas | 2025 All-CUSA Preseason Team (P)
- 2024 CUSA Player of the Year
- 2024 CUSA Freshman of the Year
- TUCCI/NFCA Division I National Freshman of the Year Top 25 List
- 2024 CUSA All-Tournament Team
- 2024 All-CUSA First Team (Pitcher)
- 2024 All-CUSA First Team (Outfielder)
- 2024 CUSA All-Freshman Team
- CUSA Pitcher of the Week (March 25, 2024)
- 5x-CUSA Freshman of the Week
Conference USA’s postseason awards were full of Aggies in NM State’s first year as a league member. Leading the way with five distinctions was Desirae Spearman. The true freshman was named to the CUSA All-Freshman Team and was Freshman of the Year after winning five weekly awards of the same honor. She earned a first-team selection twice; once as an outfielder and once again as a pitcher. For her efforts, the league capped off her remarkable campaign by tabbing her Player of the Year.
As a true freshman, Spearman maintained a .365 batting average while pacing the conference in home runs (18), OPS (1.321) and ranking in the top three with 43 RBIs. The Hanks High School product also ranked second on the team in total bases (109) and fourth on the team in total hits (46) despite missing 14 of the Aggies’ 55 games due to injury. The two-way star held a remarkable .794 slugging percentage in league games; higher than any CUSA batter. Spearman ranked 23rd in the nation and led the league with 18 home runs, including a conference-high 12 in CUSA play.
The Hanks High School product posted three multi-home run games, including two in conference play. Her most recent two-home run outing came at top-seeded Liberty on April 20, when she also tossed a complete game and held the Flames scoreless through 6.2 innings. Against Nebraska, Spearman went the distance again and allowed just one hit in a monumental 3-0 upset victory.
In the circle, Spearman posed just as much of a problem for opponents. She boasted an 8-4 record and racked up 75 strikeouts while maintaining a 3.15 ERA in 17 appearances across 84.1 innings of work.
Elena Escobar (Liberty)
Desirea Spearman’s Conference Rival
In her first season as a Lady Flame after transferring from North Alabama, Escobar went 16-7 with a 2.75 ERA last season, tying for the CUSA lead in wins. She was named to the NFCA All-Mideast Region second team, All-CUSA second team and CUSA All-Tournament Team. Escobar finished the 2024 season ranked third in CUSA in both ERA (2.75) and strikeouts (130) last season and was fifth in opponents’ batting average (.233).
Elam and Spearman will lead the Aggies into their season opener on Friday, Feb. 7, from the NM State Softball Complex. An opening-day doubleheader against UC Santa Barbara and Colorado State will commence the NM State Invitational in what is set to be the 51st season in school history. This spring, Kathy Rodolph looks to guide the program to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2018.
For complete coverage of NM State Softball during the 2025 season, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of the Aggies – and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Softball), Twitter (@NMStateSoftball) and Instagram (@NMStateSoftball).
