This Athens-area star commits to three-time defending national champion college powerhouse
Kendall Wells has solidified a spot with one of the most successful college athletic programs of all time.
The North Oconee softball standout catcher and top five recruit in the class of 2025 made a verbal commitment last week to three-peat national champion Oklahoma. Wells will join coach Patty Gasso's roster the summer Oklahoma makes its move from the Big 12 to the SEC, coincidentally keeping a small piece of home with the player who grew up near the University of Georgia.
The Sooners have won seven national championships since 2000, but Wells said her decision was about more than trophies.
"I've been going out to camps there since between eighth and ninth grade. It's kind of always been my number one," Wells said. "Norman reminds me a lot of Athens, the way the whole campus is set up, the way downtown is by campus and just the whole atmosphere out there."
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That doesn't make it any less exciting though.
"Her mother and I are super excited, but right now, the reality hasn't hit that she's going to be that far from home. I keep telling everybody it's only a two-hour flight," her dad, Ken, said. "We're leaving her that far away from home, but she's in great hands. It's a family atmosphere out there so I have no problem leaving her (there). Except for the parts when I'll miss her, ... but it's just like anybody going off to school. ... We can't wait to watch her career grow."
Wells is projected to bring plenty to the table for the Sooners, both at the plate and from the dugout. She is as advertised, Titans coach Bill Dooley said, a very excitable, extroverted and emotional leader who recently broke the same school record she set three years ago for most single-season home runs with 15.
"As a freshman (when I got 14) it was really exciting," she said. "I was like, 'Oh my gosh!' Obviously, when you break your own records, it's pretty cool, but to see the growth over the years is (the coolest)."
Dooley added: "She's working so hard and that's why we were so excited when she got back and also to be able to see the things she's doing on the field and what she accomplishes. Sky is the limit for her."
Wells returned at the end of her sophomore season from an ankle injury she suffered during the summer of 2022 while playing on turf fields with her travel team. She called the injury "a freak accident" because it occurred while she was on base waiting to run. She slipped on the bag and her feet came out from under her, her right ankle dragging behind her body at a 90-degree angle, dislocating and tearing a ligament in half. She had surgery a few days later for plates, screws, anchors and wires placed in to hold it together.
She sat the bench for five months, going through physical therapy and rehabilitation. The mental aspect was the hardest hurdle, she said. because she was forced to sit and watch her teammates. She began working with an assistant coach counting and calling pitches, and the team's energy kept her motivated.
Because the accident wasn't something that happens on an average day, Wells doesn't think much about it. She continues to push forward and make herself and her team better. She analyzes, asks questions and leads.
"We can hand her a scouting report and she's able to take that and run with it," Dooley said. "(After her injury), she hopped back in and didn't miss a beat. It was crazy. She ... was the same person she was before, if not better."
Dooley said Wells is the total package for Gasso's top-notch program. She knows what to do and when to do it. She has speed and power, as well as savvy on the base paths. Despite limited chances to hit, as she often gets walked, she's affects the team positively on the offensive side whenever she can. She's also a force behind the plate, affecting defensive strategy the Titans work from in similarly positive ways.
"It means a lot (committing to Oklahoma)," Wells said. "It's a really elite program and they've always been successful. The fact (that I get to) play at that level, that I was even considered to be on a team that's that elite, means a lot."
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: North Oconee softball star Kendall Wells commits to Oklahoma Sooners
