UK Athletics Photo
Reaghan Oney, Kentucky’s 2024 Miss Softball after a historic career at Montgomery County, is returning to the Bluegrass for her second season of college softball.
Oney hit .321 in 48 games with six doubles, two triples and two home runs at Troy last season. She was an everyday starter in right field and had a .961 field percentage after being a catcher in high school.
Kentucky coach Rachel Lawson guided her team to a 31-28 finish this season that ended with a loss in the NCAA Tournament regional final. Kentucky went 7-17 in regular-season Southeastern Conference play.
“The first things that immediately stand out about Reaghan are her passion for the game and her love of the Big Blue Nation,” Lawson said in a UK release. “Reaghan’s mindset, work ethic and talents are exactly what we are looking for as we complete our roster.”
Oney grew up a Kentucky fan but originally committed to play at Marshall before a coaching change there led her to decommit and pick Troy.
Oney ended her high school career with 69 home runs, 255 RBI and 301 hits. Oney, who had six career grand slams, set the Kentucky state high school record for most home runs in a season (24) and most consecutive games with a home run (7) in her senior season. Madisonville North-Hopkins’ Kaylee Tow, who became a three-time All-American at Alabama and is now a SEC Network analyst, held the previous season home run mark. Oney now ranks third with 69 career homers behind Tow (75) and Mallory Peyton (70).
As a senior, Oney had 79 hits and a .594 batting average with 79 RBIs. Her RBI total in 2024 was the fourth best in state history (Peyton is the state leader with 87). Oney’s 255 career RBI now rank sixth all-time in Kentucky.
Oney set 18 school records and three state records — season homers, consecutive games with a home run and career grand slams (6). She also had 104 stolen bases in 109 tries and was hit by a pitch 36 times in her career and scored 303 runs.
She won the prestigious Johnny Bench Award given to the state’s top catcher and was named the 10th Region Tournament MVP after leading her team to the state tournament in 2024.
“I have always lived and played by the same motto,” Oney said about signing at Kentucky. “God first, family second and the rest will fall into place. Hometown, homegrown!”
