Update, Thursday, November 13:

The Nittany Lions added one more recruit on Thursday to round out the class of 2025.

Maddie Henry is the fourth and final recruit inbound to Happy Valley. Henry, a Frankfort, Illinois, native, is an infielder. She earned All-Conference selections in 2023 and 2025. Henry is ranked 16th in Line Drive Media’s Top-100 Softball Rankings.

Another BALLER from the Land of Lincoln

Happy Valley, join us in welcoming our final signee to the Nittany Lion Softball family, MADDIE HENRY#WeAre | #AllIn pic.twitter.com/EKALRjQD1A

— Penn State Softball (@PennStateSB) November 13, 2025

Original Post

Penn State softball signed three players to its recruiting class of 2025, adding two outfielders and a catcher to mark the start of the signing period.

Avery Gehrke is an outfielder/middle infielder from Scottsdale, Arizona. In the 2025 season, she was named First Team All-Conference and First Team All-Region, as well as being crowned 5A State Champion. For Desert Mountain High School, she has a career stat line of a .457 hitting average with 43 hits and 35 runs scored. For Athletics Mercado-Smith, she batted .370 with a .485 on-base percentage. 

From The Valley to Happy Valley

Nittany Nation, join us in welcoming Avery Gehrke to the Penn State softball family#WeAre | #AllIn pic.twitter.com/3bFtaHRPrj

— Penn State Softball (@PennStateSB) November 12, 2025

Lily Duffill is a catcher out of Bridgeville, Pennsylvania. At Chartiers Valley High School, she has achieved a batting average of .503. Duffill also plays for Indiana Magic Gold 18U Moore-Neace, where she batted .367 with 13 home runs and 53 runs batted in her last season. She is ranked third in the state of Pennsylvania by Big Time Softball.

Another Keystone STAR

Happy Valley, join us in welcoming PA native Lily Duffill to the Penn State Softball program#WeAre | #AllIn pic.twitter.com/R7LDlO8fI1

— Penn State Softball (@PennStateSB) November 12, 2025

Ryleigh Kiel is an outfielder heading to Penn State from Chatham, Illinois. In her last season, Kiel batted .442 with 53 hits for Glenwood High School, the 2025 3A State Champions. She also plays for the Beverly Bandits, where she had a .500 batting average and a .972 fielding average this past season. She is ranked as the No. 5 outfielder by Extra Innings and No. 24 in the class of 2026 by LineDriveMedia.

From Illinois to the 8⃣1⃣4⃣

Nittany Nation, join us as the Penn State Softball program welcomes Ryleigh Kiel into the family#WeAre | #AllIn pic.twitter.com/ENK1jmrubo

— Penn State Softball (@PennStateSB) November 12, 2025