Sophia Ramuno can establish herself as one of the Big Ten’s best pitchers in 2025

The Washington Huskies could turn to Cal Poly transfer Sophia Ramuno as their new ace.

The Washington Huskies softball team took some massive hits in the transfer portal and much like the football and men’s basketball teams, coach Heather Tarr is going to roll out a new-look starting lineup in 2025. Not only is she replacing eight hitters, but the entirety of her 2024 pitching staff.

Lindsay Lopez and Brooke Nelson graduated, while Ruby Meylan and Sidne Peters entered the transfer portal. That forced Tarr to hit the portal herself, where she added Madi Balk and Rylee Rehbein from Florida State and Montana respectively, along with Sophia Ramuno from Cal Poly.

Ramuno is coming off a stellar second season where she was named to the All-Big-West first team thanks to a 2.31 ERA and 160 strikeouts over 160 1/3 innings. At Washington, she may be expected to take on a similar workload and if she can carry over the success she saw in 2024, become one of the Big Ten’s best pitchers.

Balk, Rehbein, and first-year Morgan Reimer should round out the Huskies’ pitching staff for the 2025 campaign, which should ask a lot of Ramuno. Washington’s other two transfers have combined for 104 1/3 innings in their careers, while the Cal Poly transfer has worked 284 1/3 in two seasons with the Mustangs.

Last year, Meylan led the Huskies with just 123 2/3 innings pitched, with Lopez close behind at 87 2/3. If Tarr’s team is going to have success in the Big Ten, a lot of it is going to depend on a strong pitching staff, which could put a lot of weight on Ramuno’s shoulders.

If she can continue on her strong sophomore campaign and act as a true ace, Ramuno will take a lot of pressure off of Washington’s young lineup, especially in the early part of the season.