Pirates Add Pair Of Transfers For 2023 Season

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Taylor Edwards and Dafne Mercado have enrolled at East Carolina and will compete for the softball team starting with the 2023 season, according to an announcement on Thursday by head coach Shane Winkler.

Edwards played her first two seasons of college softball at UCLA while Mercado competed at Memphis for her freshman season.

"Taylor brings PAC-12 experience and the ability to play multiple positions. Her athleticism and left-handed bat will make an immediate impact in our lineup, Winkler said. "Dafne has the ability to play multiple positions and we've seen firsthand the impact she can make at the plate. She really wanted to be part of what we are building here and knows exactly what it takes to compete in this league."

Taylor Edwards | Utility | 5-3 | Graduate | Los Angeles, Calif. (UCLA)
In 2021, recorded a .278 batting average in 21 games for the Bruins, racking up five hits, including three doubles, seven runs scored, and five runs batted in … notched a pair of two-hit, two-RBI performances at Cal State Fullerton on Feb. 20 and May 8 … doubled twice in that game against the Cardinal, picking up two RBIs. Edwards played in 20 games, going 2-for-10 (.200) with six runs scored, a home run and four runs batted in ... had what proved to be the final hit of the COVID-19 shortened season, belting a three-run homer on March 8 in a mercy-rule win over Cal Poly, the first dinger of her career ... had an RBI single and a stolen base on Feb. 7 versus Cal Poly ... also scored runs against No. 15 Georgia (Feb. 15), USF (Feb. 16), Auburn (Feb. 23), Mount St. Mary's (Feb. 28) and Weber State (Feb. 29). Edwards played four years of softball and four years of basketball at Carson High School in Carson, Calif. ... First Team All-City, All-Marine League and Scholar Athlete every season ... was named Marine League Player of the Year as a senior, as she hit .578 with nine home runs, 35 runs batted in, nine doubles, nine steals and eight triples ... two-time First Team All-Area and Slugger of the Year ... hit .521 during her career with 18 homers, 108 RBI, 26 steals, 24 doubles and 24 triples ... was the 2019 CHS Athlete of the Year, and the only female athlete honored by the Carson Colts Alumni Association (Vollnogle Leadership Award).

Dafne Mercado | Catcher/Utility | 5-0 | Sophomore | Coppell, Texas (Memphis)
Appeared in 23 games for the Tigers, including 20 starts ... Tallied a fielding percentage of .976 with 71 putouts and two errors ... Named to 2022 AAC Weekly Honor Roll (March 28) ... Made her collegiate debut against Lamar (Feb. 10) ... Recorded her first multi-hit game in a Tiger uniform against East Carolina (March 26) ... Also smashed her first homerun against ECU (March 26) ... Caught six runners in two games of series with Pirates (March 26-27). Prepped at Coppell High School where she was a four-year letterwinner ... Named First Team All-District as a senior ... Was Offensive Player of the Year in her sophomore year ... Had a .524 batting average her senior season with 24 hits and 30 RBI her senior year.

ECU received 12 votes and was picked to finish sixth in the AAC Preseason Poll, which was released by the conference on Tuesday, Jan. 17. The Pirates will begin the 2023 campaign on Feb. 10 at the UNCW Tournament in Wilmington, N.C. where they will face off against UNC Wilmington, Virginia Tech and Purdue Fort Wayne.

Players Mentioned

Taylor Edwards

Dafne Mercado

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