When football coach Kalen DeBoer was being considered for the Alabama Crimson Tide job, many wondered whether he would be more interested in the Seattle Seahawks’ opening. One of the reasons for that was because his daughter, Alexis DeBoer, had recently committed to play softball for the University of Washington, the school where her dad was coaching at the time.
So far, both his move, and hers, have worked out just fine for each of them. He has put together a 20-8 record in his first two years with the Tide and snagged a win in the 2025 CFP. She may have done even better, however.
During her first season with the Huskies, the Big Ten named Alexis DeBoer the Freshman of the Year. She also led the team in batting average (.358), home runs (21) and RBI (55). (By the way, her first college softball game was against… you guessed it, Alabama. In her third game, also against Alabama, she hit her first home run.)
“I always get texts from him before and after the game,” Alexis told The Athletic in April about her bust father. “It’s nice having support coming from a bigger name in college football, knowing that he cares so much about college softball.”
Alexis DeBoer had a stellar sophomore softball season
As a sophomore, Alexis DeBoer did even better. After being named a Preseason Second Team All-American, she earned All-Big Ten First Team honors and made the All-Defensive Team. She led the Huskies with 18 home runs (tenth-most in the Big Ten), 45 runs scored, 36 walks, and a 1.221 OPS
She also ranked in the top five on the team for almost every offensive category, batting .359 with 60 hits, 122 total bases, a .490 on-base percentage, and 51 RBI. In the field, with 336 chances playing first base, she only committed one error.
On Sunday, the selection committee chose the Washington Huskies for the NCAA Tournament for the 32nd consecutive season. They will compete in the Fayetteville Regional hosted by the No. 5 overall seed, the Arkansas Razorbacks. Fordham and South Florida are also in their group.
Washington is 36-18 on the year, but has lost 9 of their last 11 games heading into the tournament. The Huskies’ first game is against South Florida on Friday, May 15, at 5:00 p.m. PT on ESPNU.