By Kristen Zimmerman

 Texas-What a difference a year makes.

The Texas A&M softball program catapulted itself into the public eye with its 2005 Big 12-championship team that went on to appear in the NCAA Super Regional. But the Aggies fell back into relative obscurity with a spotty 34-19 finish in 2006.

One year later and Texas A&M, which the NFCA ranked as high as No. 2 in February, is once again recognized as one of the elite teams in the country. The difference? Leadership.

“We really struggled to find leadership and our identity as a team [in 2006],” Head Coach Jo Evans said. “It has a lot to do with the maturation process. The junior and senior classes have really stepped it up and are helping the younger players relax and play the game. It’s certainly a big part of our success.”

Two pivotal members of that junior class are pitchers Amanda Scarborough and Megan Gibson, who helped lead the Aggies both on the mound and at the plate to the Big 12 title with All-American freshman campaigns in 2005.

“My freshman year I learned a lot just by making it that far and having the seniors that we had,” Gibson said. “I learned how to approach the Super Regionals and the Big 12. It’s a big deal, but you have to put it aside and focus on the bigger picture.”

“[In 2006] you didn’t know which team was going to show up, could beat the No. 1 ranked team one day, then lose to a team that wasn’t even ranked. It showed our immaturity,” Scarborough said. “It’s different this year because we’ve had leaders stepping up. Still have the same talent and the same players, but they’re filling different roles.”

In fact, the Aggies lost just one starting player, outfielder Rocky Spencer, from the 2006 squad. But despite the lack of clientele change, the difference is clear. This year’s team surpassed its entire 2006 win total with 10 regular-season games left to play and of its six losses, only one was to an unranked team.

“Our junior class as a whole told our coach before the season started that we wanted to make a difference between last year and this year,” Gibson said. “We wanted to put our hands in and be leaders on and off the field. So far it’s working.”

The change rings true on the individual level as well. The ASA named Scarborough and Gibson as Top 25 finalists for the USA Collegiate Player of the Year Award in April. The classmates both topped their season strikeout totals from 2006 with a good amount of games left to play and Gibson’s ERA has hovered more than a full point lower than last season’s ERA of 2.55. Gibson also became Texas A&M’s all-time career homerun leader with her 40th blast against the University of Nebraska on April 6.

“They’re both outstanding players. They’re elite athletes so just by virtue they set the tone with how they play the game,” said Coach Evans. “They’re great role models and they’re not afraid to step up and say the hard thing.”

Fellow juniors Joy Davis and co-captain Jaime Hinshaw and senior Sharonda McDonald are also putting together career seasons for the Aggies, while three new faces have been introduced to the everyday lineup, freshmen Alex Reynolds, Macie Morrow and Bailey Schroeder.

For the Aggies, the combination of talent and leadership on this year’s team not only draws comparisons to the Texas A&M of two years ago, but also to the national champions of the ‘80s.

Competing as an independent before joining the Big 12 in 1996, Texas A&M made it to the NCAA College World Series five times between 1983 and 1988, taking home the crown twice. But since 1988, the closest the Aggies have come to returning to the advanced stages of the postseason tournament was in 2005.

“It’s always in the back of our minds,” Evans said. “We’re privileged to be a part of such a great tradition, and we want to be a part of that and aspire to the same level of excellence that wins championships.”

If you were to judge by Texas A&M’s quick exit from the NCAA tournament last year, regaining the glory of past Aggies teams might seem like a long shot. But that was last year.

“The ultimate goal [is] to make it to the World Series,” Scarborough said. “Normally, people just say that because it sounds like the right thing to say, but for this team, that is the goal and we’re not going to be satisfied unless we go to the World Series. And with this team, that is totally feasible.”

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