Recruiting News & Notes (1/26)
Recruiting News & Notes (1/26)
Wow, a lot going on this weekend and today with verbals and players emerging, including a 2020 player (yep, a 7th grader!), who was so impressive at a workout recently she’s headed to visit a Top 10 college campus in a few weeks…
*** Anthony LaRezza, the head coach at perennial high school power Immaculate Heart Academy in Washington Township, N.J. and head of Akadema Elite Gold, told us today that one of the top 2020’s in the country looks to be Ryleigh White, a pitcher from Jefferson, N.J. who went to the Top Prospects Combine in New York two weekends ago.
After a great workout, her stock is blowing up after she was clocked at 63 mph in one session and 64 mph in another.
Yes, she’s a 7th grader and is already being invited to college campuses… and she’s still two years away from attending Immaculate Heart Academy (thus, the connection to Coach LaRezza).
He tells us that Mike White of Oregon was working the New England’s Finest Winter Showcase coaching the pitchers which included Ryleigh and she did so well was invited to visit the Duck campus on February 8-9. Ralph Weekly of Tennessee also reportedly knows of her and is interested, but hasn’t seen her and that’s the case too for Alabama and Florida State according to Coach LaRessa.
Ryleigh plays for the Central Jersey Lightning 14U team and has been asked by elite programs across the nation to play for them, even at the 18U level.
Why? Because although she’s only 12, the young hurler is close to 6-foot tall and throws a 64 mph “heavy ball” that is very tough to hit.
*** Katie Kudlacik, a freshman pitcher for Akadema Elite Gold who will be coached by LaRezza at IHA this spring in high school ball, has committed to Rutgers and is a candidate for the 2018 Hot 100.
“She’s a 5-foot-8 lefty and is long and lanky and when she gets into the weight room in college she’ll be that much stronger and more effective,” he says.
Coach LaRezza says that at the Team NJ tournament last summer, Rutgers came to watch and was impressed with how Katie faced good batters who in the the second and third time around in the order were still swinging and missing.
“That was the most impressive thing,” he says. “Katie got 11 K’s and she was still hard to hit even after the batters had seen her a could times. Rutgers invited to her campus and offered and before long she committed. She loves that it is in-state and Big Ten competition.”
According to her coach, the freshman throws in the low 60’s with a very effective riseball and curve.
“She has the complete package,” he continues. “It’s more like a screwball coming in to the right-handers.”
*** Coach Chris Gibson coaches the Georgia Impact-Gibson 16U team and you can count on the team being high in the FAB 50 16U Club rankings as the entire team returns including two 2017 Hot pitchers in Ava Tillmann (Ole Miss) and Emily Kachel (Alabama-Birmingham).
Coach Gibson wrote today to say he just had four more players verbal… here they are with comments from him:
— P Pierce Fox (2016, Georgia Southern)
“Pierce was All Region Class AAAAAA Selection and helped Harrison High (Ga.) school reach the Elite 8. She was recruited by LSU, FSU, and Georgia State, before deciding on Georgia Southern.”
— OF Kayla Gibson (2016, Valdosta State)
“The power hitting outfielder from South Paulding High (Ga.), was an All Region AAAAA selection after leading her team with 53 RBI, 15 doubles two triples and two HR. She was recruited by several D1 programs, but selected to stay in Georgia and attend Valdosta State University.”
— IF Zoe Miller (2016, Lee Univ.)
“Zoe was one of the most recruited players on Impact Gibson and was appointed team captain the last four years. She was an All Region Selection out of AAAAAA Lambert High (Ga.). Helping her team advance to the second round of the state playoffs. Zoe chose to follow her faith and verballed to Christian-based Lee University.”
— OF Ally Jones (2017, Mercer)
“The speedy outfielder helped Calhoun High (Ga.) win back-to-back State AAA high school championships. Ally was an All Region AAA pick and All State Selection. She was recruited by several D1 schools before choosing Mercer University.”
*** Excited to do a Rising Star profile on a catcher from Tennessee in the 2018 class that a parent of an SEC commit has said is one of the best catchers in the country at any age in the club division.
She already has SEC and ACC schools after her but look out for Kentucky and Alabama, two early favorites.
Check back tomorrow to find out more on this talented young player…
*** Belated congratulations to Kirsten McMonigle, the record-setting 2016 shortstop from Georgia who had quite the junior campaign.
Kirsten helped her Greenbrier High team win the AAAAA championship and put up school records in average (.532), on-base percentage (.616), hits (66), runs (62), and steals (32).
She had a 25-game hitting streak and reached base in EVERY one of her team’s 40 games while going 32-for-32 in steals.
Kirsten was named the AAAAA State Softball Player of the Year, 1st Team All-State and a bucket load of other honors. In the three state championship games against runner-up Cambridge and their pitcher committed to Georgia, Kirsten went 9-for-14 with five RBI.
The junior is committed to Georgia State.
*** Jan Greenhawk, the Co-Head Coach of Wagner’s M/G Gold out of Maryland, has always been one of my favorite coaches and has a couple standout players of note including a potential 2018 Hot 100 player in Maggie Cannon, a pitcher/first baseman.
Coach Greenhawk writes:
“She hasn’t pitched one pitch in high school, yet Maggie Cannon has stirred up a lot of excitement in Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic States. At 5-foot-9, this athletic 9th grader not only throws at speeds of between 60-64, but she has mastered a strong curve, change up, drop, rise and screw ball as well.”
“A recent addition to the Wagner’s M/G Gold team in August, Maggie has become a mainstay of the Wagner’s pitching staff and has attracted the attention of several prominent Division 1 programs. She is coached by pitching coach Bill Dryden and attends Parkside High School in Salisbury, Maryland.
— There’s also a 2017 player she is high on—Samantha Frederick, a 2017 outfielder:
“Samantha Frederick’s size may be deceptive, but this Delaware sophomore is starting to turn heads with her quickness in the outfield and power at the plate. Samantha joined Wagner’s M/G Gold in 2014 and has become an everyday starter in the outfield and earned a spot in the middle of the line-up.”
“Recently at Rising Stars in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Samantha went 5-for-13 for the weekend including two doubles and a home run in her hits accounting for four runs in six games. Her on base percentage was .953. Samantha is uncommitted, but is high on the list of several Division 1 programs.”
*** Coach Gerry Quinn of the Illinois Chill writes to say that Kalyssa Koehn, a 2017 shortstop/outfielder, committed to Wisconsin-Green Bay on Saturday.
He also writes that he has a 2018 Hot 100 candidate in 2B Claire Swedberg, who has verballed to Penn State.
Coach Quinn says of Claire: “She verballed shortly after finishing the 8th grade, she’s a left-handed hitter with exceptional speed in the 2.7 range home-to-first. Claire can hit for power, but also slaps and bunts. She’s a true triple threat, not just someone who says she does all three—she actually does.”
Claire led the 16U team with 14 steals this past fall and has a 64 mph overhand throw.”
*** A few days ago we reported on Mike Williams’ Sorcerer 16U team which has two of the top 2018 recruits in the country.
He has another young player who just committed in McKenna Gregory, a 2017 pitcher who verballed to Michigan State.
“McKenna is tall and strong and that’s what the attraction of colleges. She can also hit the ball hard and in our PGF run and McKenna came in and pitched 17 innings and gave up only two runs.”
“She also went for 5-for-9 at the plate with a double and home run in the last day and her stock rose a lot in that last day.”
“McKenna’s also a standout student both in GPA (4.0) and SAT and that was also attractive to Michigan State.”
*** K Rae Blasingame, a 2017 pitcher for the Georgia Elite – Laukka team and a player on our Hot 100 watch list, had a nice weekend in Orland a week ago at the Diamond9 Sun Classic.
She pitched 18 innings and only gave up two earned runs while recording 23 K’s. K Rae had two complete games included a 6-0 shout and a 10-2 win.
She’s visiting North Georgia this month as well as Georgia Southern.
*** More verbals:
| Ariana | Belarde | OF | 2016 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | Illinois |
| Ari | Burns | OF | 2016 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | Cal State Fullerton |
| Kelsee | Bushell | C/3B | 2015 | Attitude Roadrunners 16U | Lamar CC |
| Alexis | Carrillo | 2B | 2015 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | Illinois |
| Kaylee | Ellebracht | C | 2015 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | Georgia Tech |
| Kira | Ferraiolo | UT | 2017 | Central Jersey Lightning Gold | Sacred Heart |
| Hunter | Gibbons | 2B/OF | 2015 | Team North Carolina | Western Carolina |
| McKenn | Gregory | 1B/P | 2017 | Sorcerer – Williams | Michigan State |
| Hope | Hernandez | SS | 2017 | Wagner’s 3n2 | Troy |
| Kalyssa | Koehn | SS/OF | 2017 | Illinois Chill | Wisconsin-Green Bay |
| Skie | Munoz | P | 2015 | OC Batbusters – Lara | Long Beach State |
| Claire | Nicholson | C | 2017 | Beverly Bandits | Ohio State |
| Sarah | Phillips | C/SS/3B | 2015 | Attitude Roadrunners 16U | College of So. Idaho |
| Genesis | Ramirez | 3B/C | 2016 | Firecrackers – Brashear | UC Santa Barbara |
| Angelique | Ramos | 3B/SS | 2016 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | Hawaii |
| Kaylyn | Shepherd | 1B/OF | 2016 | Richmond Diamonds | Central Arkansas |
| Lexi | Sosa | P/UT | 2019 | Firecrackers – Brashear | UCLA |
| Jessica | Swistock | IF/C | 2016 | Tri-State Thunder Gold | Winthrop |
| Amanda | Thacker | C/UT | 2016 | Texas Bombers | Texas A&M-Kingsville |
| Marina | Vitalich | P | 2015 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | George Mason |
| Amanda | Vitalich | MIF/OF | 2017 | Firecrackers – Ellebracht | Loyola Marymount |