Texas Tech University Athletics
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Jersey Number 24
NiJaree Canady
- Height:
- 6-0
- Class:
- Senior
- Position:
- Pitcher/First Base
- B/T:
- R/R
- Hometown:
- Topeka, Kansas
- Prev School:
- Stanford
CSC Academic Team Member of the Year (2026)
Top 100 Most Influential Athletes by Times Magazine (2026)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 10 Finalist (2026)
WCWS All-Tournament Team (2026)
All-Big 12 Tournament Team (2026)
All-Big 12 Defensive Team (2026)
All-Big 12 First Team (2026)
Co-Big 12 Pitcher of the Year (2026)
Big 12 Pitcher of the Week x4 (3/3, 3/10, 4/8 and 5/5)
NFCA Second Team All-American (2026)
Softball America First Team All-American (2026)
D1Softball First Team All-American (2026)
Big 12 Female Athlete of the Year (2025)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 3 Finalist (2025)
Big 12 Pitcher of the Year (2025)
First Team All-Big 12 (2025)
Big 12 All-Tournament Team (2025)
Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player (2025)
Big 12 Pitcher of the Week twice (2025)
CSC Academic Team Member of the Year (2025)
CSC Academic All-American (2025)
CSC Academic All-District (2025)
D1Softball First Team All-American (2025)
Softball America First Team All-American (2025)
D1Softball National Pitcher of the Year (2025)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year (2024)
Honda Sport Award for Softball (2024, 2025)
NFCA National Pitcher of the Year (2024, 2025)
NFCA First Team All-American (2024, 2025)
NFCA All-Region First Team (2024, 2025)
NFCA First Team Academic All-American (2024, 2025)
Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year (2024)
TUCCI/NFCA Freshman of the Year (2023)
D1Softball Freshman of the Year (2023)
Softball America NCAA Freshman of the Yearย (2023)
D1Softball Freshman All-Americanย (2023)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top-25 Finalistย (2023)
Women's College World Series All-Tournament Teamย (2023, 2024, 2025)
Two-time All-Pac-12 First Teamย (2023, 2024)
Pac-12 All-Freshman Teamย (2023)
Two-time Pac-12 All-Tournament Teamย (2023, 2024)
SENIOR SEASON (2026):
Appeared in 46 games with 31 starts in the circle โฆ became the only active pitcher to have 1,000 strikeouts and 100 wins in their career during the 2026 season โฆ posted a 29-7 record with a 1.87 ERA on her way to being named Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Year โฆ was also a consensus All-American by the NFCA, D1Softball and Softball America โฆ was a top 10 finalist for USA Softball Player of the Year โฆ struck out 253 batters and held opponents to a .169 batting average โฆ was named to the All-Big 12 First Team and All-Big 12 Defensive Team for her performance this season โฆ named to the WCWS All-Tournament Team and the Big 12 All-Tournament Team โฆ was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week on four different occasions (3/3, 3/10, 4/8 and 5/5) โฆ had a season-high 13 strikeouts against Texas A&M โ Corpus Christi (2/28) โฆ had big wins over Texas A&M (2/7), Arizona (3/14), UCF (3/20), Arizona State (4/25-26), UCLA (5/31) and Alabama (6/1) โฆ threw the first perfect game of her career on senior day against Baylor (5/2) โฆ tossed back-to-back no-hitters against Texas A&M โ Corpus Christi and Houston (3/6) โฆ recorded her first career grand slam against North Texas (2/6) โฆ had two doubles against Utah (4/10) โฆ was selected No. 2 overall in AUSL draft by the Texas Volts โฆ named one of the top 100 most influential athletes of 2026 by Times Magazine.
JUNIOR SEASON (2025)
Played in 61 games, starting 56 of them and made 46 appearances in the circleโฆ finished the season with a 34-7 record and a 1.11 ERA and 319 strikeoutsโฆ widely regarded as the best pitcher in softball, she was a finalist for the USA Softball National Player of the Yearโฆ was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and a First Team All-American across all media and national outletsโฆ threw a no-hitter against Kansas (3/28) where she struck out 12 batters in 5.0 inningsโฆ followed up that performance with a complete game where she struck out 14 batters, also against Kansas (3/29)โฆ led the team with 11 home runs and slugged .639โฆ finished the season with tied for the most wins in program history, second best ERA in program history and second most strikeouts in program historyโฆ was the consensus No. 1 player in the country by D1Softball and Softball America all season longโฆ named the 2025 Honda Sport Award Winner for Softball.
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH (Stanford)
Canadyโs resume speaks for itself as she has been presented several honors during her career, including being named the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year in 2024โฆ Canady was also recognized as the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year and an NFCA first team All-American in 2024 as well as an All-Pac 12 first team honoree and All-Pac 12 defensive team selectionโฆ Canady, who was a two-time NFCA National Pitcher of the Week pick, also excelled in the classroom, earning NFCA first team Academic All-America accoladesโฆ Canadyโs dominance in the circle showed to the tune of a nation-leading 337 strikeouts and otherworldly 0.73 ERA, which also led the nationโฆ She was 24-7 overall in the circle this past season and an impressive 41-10 with an 0.67 ERA over her two seasons at Stanford as she helped push the Cardinal to the final four teams each year at the Womenโs College World Series... Canady also represented the U.S. this summer in the 2024 Japan All-Star Series... Canady, a native of Topeka, Kansas, was recognized with the prestigious Honda Sport Award this past seasonโฆ The honor, presented by the Collegiate Women's Sports Awards, is given to the top women athletes in each sport and voted on by administrators from over 1,000 NCAA schools.
High School
Two time Kansas Softball Gatorade Player of the Year (2021, 2022)โฆ Ranked No. 11 recruit according to Extra Innings Softballโฆ A 2022 graduate of Topeka High Schoolโฆ Led her team to back-to-back state championships (2021-22), including the first ever for her high schoolโฆ Shawnee County Spring Athlete of the Year (2021-22) and Overall Athlete of the Yearโฆ First Team All-City (2019, 2021)โฆ First Team All-League (2019, 2021)โฆ First Team All-State (2019, 2021)โฆ Max Prep Softball First Team All-American (2021)โฆ 6A Sports Player of the Year (2021)โฆ City Player of the Year (2021)โฆ Had a 0.26 ERA as a junior with 232 Strikeouts across 107.2 innings, hitting .478 with 13 home runsโฆ Had a 0.82 ERA as a senior with 163 strikeouts over 74.2 innings, hitting .530 with 42 RBIs.
Personal
Daughter to Bruce and Katherine Canadyโฆ sister to Bruce Canady Jr. who plays football at Californiaโฆ Enjoys reading and playing with her dog.
Top 100 Most Influential Athletes by Times Magazine (2026)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 10 Finalist (2026)
WCWS All-Tournament Team (2026)
All-Big 12 Tournament Team (2026)
All-Big 12 Defensive Team (2026)
All-Big 12 First Team (2026)
Co-Big 12 Pitcher of the Year (2026)
Big 12 Pitcher of the Week x4 (3/3, 3/10, 4/8 and 5/5)
NFCA Second Team All-American (2026)
Softball America First Team All-American (2026)
D1Softball First Team All-American (2026)
Big 12 Female Athlete of the Year (2025)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top 3 Finalist (2025)
Big 12 Pitcher of the Year (2025)
First Team All-Big 12 (2025)
Big 12 All-Tournament Team (2025)
Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player (2025)
Big 12 Pitcher of the Week twice (2025)
CSC Academic Team Member of the Year (2025)
CSC Academic All-American (2025)
CSC Academic All-District (2025)
D1Softball First Team All-American (2025)
Softball America First Team All-American (2025)
D1Softball National Pitcher of the Year (2025)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year (2024)
Honda Sport Award for Softball (2024, 2025)
NFCA National Pitcher of the Year (2024, 2025)
NFCA First Team All-American (2024, 2025)
NFCA All-Region First Team (2024, 2025)
NFCA First Team Academic All-American (2024, 2025)
Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year (2024)
TUCCI/NFCA Freshman of the Year (2023)
D1Softball Freshman of the Year (2023)
Softball America NCAA Freshman of the Yearย (2023)
D1Softball Freshman All-Americanย (2023)
USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Top-25 Finalistย (2023)
Women's College World Series All-Tournament Teamย (2023, 2024, 2025)
Two-time All-Pac-12 First Teamย (2023, 2024)
Pac-12 All-Freshman Teamย (2023)
Two-time Pac-12 All-Tournament Teamย (2023, 2024)
SENIOR SEASON (2026):
Appeared in 46 games with 31 starts in the circle โฆ became the only active pitcher to have 1,000 strikeouts and 100 wins in their career during the 2026 season โฆ posted a 29-7 record with a 1.87 ERA on her way to being named Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Year โฆ was also a consensus All-American by the NFCA, D1Softball and Softball America โฆ was a top 10 finalist for USA Softball Player of the Year โฆ struck out 253 batters and held opponents to a .169 batting average โฆ was named to the All-Big 12 First Team and All-Big 12 Defensive Team for her performance this season โฆ named to the WCWS All-Tournament Team and the Big 12 All-Tournament Team โฆ was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week on four different occasions (3/3, 3/10, 4/8 and 5/5) โฆ had a season-high 13 strikeouts against Texas A&M โ Corpus Christi (2/28) โฆ had big wins over Texas A&M (2/7), Arizona (3/14), UCF (3/20), Arizona State (4/25-26), UCLA (5/31) and Alabama (6/1) โฆ threw the first perfect game of her career on senior day against Baylor (5/2) โฆ tossed back-to-back no-hitters against Texas A&M โ Corpus Christi and Houston (3/6) โฆ recorded her first career grand slam against North Texas (2/6) โฆ had two doubles against Utah (4/10) โฆ was selected No. 2 overall in AUSL draft by the Texas Volts โฆ named one of the top 100 most influential athletes of 2026 by Times Magazine.
JUNIOR SEASON (2025)
Played in 61 games, starting 56 of them and made 46 appearances in the circleโฆ finished the season with a 34-7 record and a 1.11 ERA and 319 strikeoutsโฆ widely regarded as the best pitcher in softball, she was a finalist for the USA Softball National Player of the Yearโฆ was named Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and a First Team All-American across all media and national outletsโฆ threw a no-hitter against Kansas (3/28) where she struck out 12 batters in 5.0 inningsโฆ followed up that performance with a complete game where she struck out 14 batters, also against Kansas (3/29)โฆ led the team with 11 home runs and slugged .639โฆ finished the season with tied for the most wins in program history, second best ERA in program history and second most strikeouts in program historyโฆ was the consensus No. 1 player in the country by D1Softball and Softball America all season longโฆ named the 2025 Honda Sport Award Winner for Softball.
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH (Stanford)
Canadyโs resume speaks for itself as she has been presented several honors during her career, including being named the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year in 2024โฆ Canady was also recognized as the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year and an NFCA first team All-American in 2024 as well as an All-Pac 12 first team honoree and All-Pac 12 defensive team selectionโฆ Canady, who was a two-time NFCA National Pitcher of the Week pick, also excelled in the classroom, earning NFCA first team Academic All-America accoladesโฆ Canadyโs dominance in the circle showed to the tune of a nation-leading 337 strikeouts and otherworldly 0.73 ERA, which also led the nationโฆ She was 24-7 overall in the circle this past season and an impressive 41-10 with an 0.67 ERA over her two seasons at Stanford as she helped push the Cardinal to the final four teams each year at the Womenโs College World Series... Canady also represented the U.S. this summer in the 2024 Japan All-Star Series... Canady, a native of Topeka, Kansas, was recognized with the prestigious Honda Sport Award this past seasonโฆ The honor, presented by the Collegiate Women's Sports Awards, is given to the top women athletes in each sport and voted on by administrators from over 1,000 NCAA schools.
High School
Two time Kansas Softball Gatorade Player of the Year (2021, 2022)โฆ Ranked No. 11 recruit according to Extra Innings Softballโฆ A 2022 graduate of Topeka High Schoolโฆ Led her team to back-to-back state championships (2021-22), including the first ever for her high schoolโฆ Shawnee County Spring Athlete of the Year (2021-22) and Overall Athlete of the Yearโฆ First Team All-City (2019, 2021)โฆ First Team All-League (2019, 2021)โฆ First Team All-State (2019, 2021)โฆ Max Prep Softball First Team All-American (2021)โฆ 6A Sports Player of the Year (2021)โฆ City Player of the Year (2021)โฆ Had a 0.26 ERA as a junior with 232 Strikeouts across 107.2 innings, hitting .478 with 13 home runsโฆ Had a 0.82 ERA as a senior with 163 strikeouts over 74.2 innings, hitting .530 with 42 RBIs.
Personal
Daughter to Bruce and Katherine Canadyโฆ sister to Bruce Canady Jr. who plays football at Californiaโฆ Enjoys reading and playing with her dog.
Wednesday, July 15
Thursday, June 04
Thursday, June 04
Wednesday, June 03
