Cairah Curran: From the Diamond to Headlines at Santa Clara University

Cairah Curran posing for team media day, with her glove in hand. Photo Provided by SCU Athletics

Santa Clara University softball player Cairah Curran ’27, the 2024 West Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year, has made strides to further establish a lasting legacy through both individual and team successes during the 2025 season..  

Her defensive abilities at second base, in which she played in 52 of the season’s 53 games as a starter, helped lead the Broncos to an undefeated record in conference play. Individually, she is ranked 18th in all of NCAA Division I Softball, with 67 hits and a batting average of .465. 

Curran began her softball career at the age of eight, following in the footsteps of her mother and three older sisters. “I tried a lot of sports, but I found softball to be the most intriguing and rewarding to me,” she said.  

However, her journey hasn’t always been an easy one. She opened up about the emotional toll of the recruiting process, describing it as one of the more challenging aspects of her career. “September 1st is when everyone gets a message from a college, receiving an offer and scholarship, and during that time I didn’t receive anything,” she said. “It confused me just because I was putting in the work and I had thought it paid off, so it hurt my confidence a little.” 

This turned out to be a pivotal moment in her career. “It did push me to work harder, and rely on my faith, in which I knew God would pull through for me, so I just continued to pray and then I started receiving offers.”

Now flourishing with the Broncos, Curran attributes her success to her team’s distinct energy and cohesion. “It’s usually pretty hard for a whole team to get along, but I feel like we’ve had that down from the start, and it’s a very uplifting environment,” she shared. “I’ve never been on a team more optimistic, so feeding off of that helps.”

When questioned about her goals for the remainder of the season, Curran shared that the team strives to win conference play. Individually, she has already checked off some of her personal milestones. “For me, I’ve kind of already been reaching my goals I set for myself at the beginning of the season as for hitting, but just staying consistent with it and finishing strong,” she said.

Despite this, it’s about the moments, not just the numbers for Curran.“Playing softball as a whole has been fun, but breaking records with my team has been super special.” 

The Broncos have gained significant momentum under head coach Gina Carbonatto, who recently became the winningest coach in SCU softball history with 114 career victories. Currently, the team leads the WCC rankings with an impressive 25-15 overall record.

As the season progresses, Curran will remain a key player for the Broncos, both in the dugout and on the field. Her leadership and consistency at the plate will be essential as they proceed into a challenging stretch of games against teams like Saint Mary’s College, Loyola Marymount University, University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University and San Jose State University. 

With crucial games that will determine the fate of their season, Curran and the Broncos go into the final stretch of the season with both focus and determination.