Florida All-American Mia Williams joins tide of transfers to Texas Tech softball
The Texas Tech softball team nearly won a national championship with a lot of pitching, running and defense and a smidgen of slugging.
All of the sudden, slugging could be one of the Red Raiders‘ strong suits next season. And more proven pitching is on the way to complement ace NiJaree Canady.
On Saturday, June 7, Ohio State catcher Jasmyn Burns committed to Tech. On Tuesday, June 11, the Red Raiders picked up commitments from Florida second baseman Mia Williams, UCLA two-way player and two-time 20-game winner Kaitlyn Terry and Southern Illinois shortstop Jackie Lis.
Williams and Lis followed Burns in announcing their pledges to Tech on social media, and Softball America and D1Softball reported Terry’s commitment.
Burns hit 25 home runs this season, second in the Big Ten and tied for fifth in NCAA Division I. Williams hit 19 home runs, fifth in the Southeastern Conference and among the top 40 nationally. She batted .335 with 44 RBIs and was second among Gators regulars with a .714 on-base percentage and an on-base-plus-slugging of 1.144.
Lis hit a Southern Illinois career record 44 home runs over three seasons, earning first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference recognition all three years. She batted .356 with 17 homers and 57 RBIs as a freshman, hit .344 with 16 homers and 36 RBIs as a sophomore and batted .358 with 11 homers and 48 RBIs as a junior this season.
She’s a granddaughter of the late Joe Lis, a Major League Baseball first baseman and outfielder from 1970-77. Joe Lis Jr., her father, reached Triple-A with Toronto and Atlanta.
On the National Fastpitch Coaches Association all-America teams, Burns was one of 18 players on the first team and Williams was one of 18 players on the second team. Williams pronounces her first name “MEE-uh”. The Windermere (Fla.) Prep graduate was a sophomore this season.
She’s a daughter of former NBA point guard Jason Williams, who played 12 seasons and started on the Miami Heat team that beat the Dallas Mavericks for the 2006 NBA title. According to the Gainesville (Fla.) Sun, Jason Williams “was a regular fixture at games, sitting behind home plate.”
