Sharlize Palacios Clinches AUSL Playoffs
The Utah Talons became the first team to clinch a 2026 AUSL playoff spot — and their veteran catcher delivered the swing that made it happen.
The Utah Talons are in. Sharlize Palacios made sure of it.
On Friday, July 11th, Palacios stepped to the plate in the seventh inning against the Oklahoma City Spark. Utah did not have the lead. A runner stood on base. The first playoff berth of the 2026 AUSL season sat on the other side of the late innings.
What does a catcher do with a moment like that? Palacios hit a go-ahead two-run home run — her third hit of the game — and the Talons became the first team in the 2026 AUSL to punch a postseason ticket.
Palacios has been relentless. Over her last five games she is batting .412, and the seventh-inning shot extended a hitting streak she shares with teammate Jadelyn Allchin — the longest active streak on the Talons roster.
| Stretch | AVG | H-AB | RBI | Hit streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last 5 games | .412 | 7-for-17 | 6 | 7 games |
None of it surprised anyone who watched her at UCLA. Her senior season made the case on both sides of the ball — and the error column stayed empty across 321 chances.
| Season | AVG | HR | Errors | Chances |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCLA 2024 (senior) | .366 | 20 | 0 | 321 |
The NFCA — the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, which names the nation’s best college players each year — named her a Second Team All-American in 2024. She won the Pac-12 Tournament MVP the same spring. When the AUSL’s inaugural 2025 season ended, Palacios had started 22 games for the Talons’ championship roster and landed on the AUSL All-Defensive Team.
The 2025 All-Defensive Team catcher is now carrying the Talons with her bat.
Elsewhere in the AUSL, the July 20 postseason cutoff sits six days out — and the standings tell two different stories.
| Team | Record | Postseason |
|---|---|---|
| Utah Talons | 14-6 | Clinched — first team in |
| Carolina Blaze | 8-11 | On the bubble |
Reese Atwood and the Blaze need wins, and they need them now. The Talons’ catcher already punched the ticket.
What a catcher can learn from this
Palacios made her name behind the plate — the blocks, the game-calling, the throw that discourages the runner before she even releases the ball. All-Defensive honors are earned through that work, nothing else.
But catchers have two jobs. Friday night, Utah needed runs, and Palacios delivered the one that counted most.
That split between defense and offense is worth thinking about. Every extra round of cage work, every swing in the driveway after dark — that preparation has a moment it is waiting for. For Palacios, it was the seventh inning on July 11th, a runner on, game on the line.
You are behind the plate every day. Your whole team watches everything you do, whether you have the ball in your hand or not. When your moment comes, be ready for both sides of it.
Try this at your next practice
- Two-tee drill. Set one tee at knee height on the inner half, one at thigh height on the outer half. Alternate swings with no stride — just load and turn. Catchers spend long hours in the squat; this drill trains hip rotation without requiring a full windup, which mirrors how you often have to generate power from a cold stop.
- Cage accountability round. After your normal cage session, pick one pitch location and take 10 extra swings at it. No skipping. The point is to finish strong when you’re tired — the same muscle memory that fires in the seventh inning with your team watching.
- Situation at-bats. Have a coach or parent call out a game situation before each swing in your tee or soft-toss work: “Runner on, seventh inning, one run down.” Out loud. Out loud matters. Naming the moment trains your brain to stay present when the real one arrives.
Sources: Sharlize Palacios — AUSL Talons Player Page · Utah Talons headed to 2026 AUSL playoffs — MLB.com · AUSL Game Notes: Spark vs. Talons · Sharlize Palacios — UCLA Bruins Athletics
