The Athletes Unlimited Softball League will surprise star collegiate softball players with “golden tickets” over the coming weeks leading up to the draft — letting them know they will be drafted this season on one of the six AUSL teams.
Draftees will find out which team selected her — and the overall order of selection — during the AUSL Draft Show on May 4 (ESPN2; 7 p.m. ET).
On Friday, pitcher NiJaree Canady was presented with the first golden ticket by commissioner Kim Ng and Patrick Mahomes.
FIRST GOLDEN TICKET OF 2026 📷📷
NiJaree Canady receives the first golden ticket of 2026 to be drafted into the AUSL! pic.twitter.com/2mB7bWIfgj
— AUSL (@theAUSLofficial) March 28, 2026
The 2025 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, the Texas Tech senior has signed two seven-figure NIL contracts and led Stanford to two straight World Series appearances before transferring. Last year, Texas Tech made it to the national championship series before falling in Game 3.
