Today we get back to some more Signing Period business including photos (didn’t know these would be so popular!  thanks to all who wrote in saying they wanted more).  We also have a big recruiting verbal to discuss as one of the top infielders at any level has pulled the trigger.  We have more signing and recruiting notes and preview an event we’ll be at tomorrow…

 

EARLY SIGNING PERIOD PHOTOS (PART V):

 

 

 

 

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RECRUIT PROFILE: BRI PEREZ

One of the top underclass players in the country, Briana Perez, has finalized her college choice… UCLA.

Bri, who we had a chance to watch at the OnDeck National Elite Camp in mid-October, is a shortstop who plays for the Sorcerers 18U Gold team along side her very talented sister, Kylee, who is also going to UCLA.

We had Kylee listed as the No. 2 player in the 2014 class that just signed and she was a major reason UCLA had the No. 1 class in the country.

Now she’ll have her little sister joining her in a few years!  Bri was one of the standouts at the OnDeck produced event and Derek Allister said he thought Bri was one of the top five shortstops at that point of any class.  Pretty high praise indeed.

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StudentSportsSoftball.com: When did you actually commit to UCLA?
Briana Perez: November 1st.

SSS.com: Why decide now?
BP: I know it’s early for me but I was lucky to have watched my older sister go through her recruiting process and after visiting multiple schools the decision was easy.

SSS.com: What factors led to it being UCLA (guessing your sister going there had a lot to do with it!)?
BP: Having my sister at UCLA was just one of the many reasons that helped me make my decision but others were the beautiful campus, walking through the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame and trying to imagine the pride of winning 108 national Championships, feeling the energy of Coach Lisa Fernandez and believing in Coach I’s (Head Coach Kelly Inouye-Perez) message of the Bruin family and having the opportunity of being in the Bruin Bubble!

SSS.com: How did you tell the Bruin coaches?
BP: I was there in person on the campus.

SSS.com: How did you tell your family it was official, that you had chosen UCLA?
BP:I was sitting on the top steps at Shapiro Fountain with my Dad over looking Drake Stadium and said, ‘This is it.”

SSS.com: Anything else you’ll long remember about the weekend you made your commitment?
BP: Being star struck meeting Gold Medal Gymnast Jordyn Wieber at the football game!

 

Finally, here’s a video interview we did with Bri at the National Elite Camp about five weeks ago when she was still looking at four schools…

 

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SIGNING NEWS:

*** The Early Signing Period is over but we’re still getting teams in our Top 25 Recruiting Classes who are releasing their signing lists/bios… today’s includes Oklahoma State and Arizona.

Click on the link above to see those who have information available on their new signees.

We have six universities yet to release a complete signing list (although some have announced when individual players sign): Oregon, Alabama, Northwestern, Mississippi State, Maryland and Stanford.

 

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RECRUITING NEWS

*** Kate Mims, a 2014 catcher/first baseman with Sports Connection (Pa.), has committed to UMass-Lowell.

According to her father, Randy, “UML fit what Kate was looking for in size of university and breadth of degrees offered. She is very excited to be part of a new D1 program and clicked with Coach Cotter. I believe it was a combination of youth, energy, attitude, and the great feedback she received from other coaches – travel and college -about him.”

“Coach Cotter watched Kate play at Legends Elite and the Binghamton DUI tournaments, and asked her to come to his clinic in late July. The offer and commitment was made the next day in his office.”

Kate plays for Unionville High and hit .434 in high school with a .671 slugging percentage to earn 1st Team ChesMont Conference. She also did well helping her team take second at ASA 18U A Nationals where she hit .571.

 

*** Taylor Spence, a 2015 OF/2B with the Bownet team out of Southern Calif., has committed to the University of San Diego.

Spence is a speedy lefty who generally bats leadoff for Bownet. She batted .478 with 22 stolen bases as a sophomore for Westlake High School last season.

 

*** Yesterday we told you about Curstin Taylor, the 2015 pitcher from Panama City, Fla., who plays for the Wagner’s Van Atta 16U team. She’s committed to Stetson and her coach, Bobby Van Atta, wrote to tell us some nice things about his standout pitcher:

“Curstin has been playing up at the 16U level since she was 13 years old,” he begins. “Only now just 16 years old, she is becoming a force to reckon with thanks to her pitching Coach Heather Compton-Butler.”

“Curstin has played high school varsity softball since a freshman and won the Coaches Award last year as a sophomore. She has played ASA softball since 13 and pitched at the Southern Nationals in 2010.

“Completing her first full year with Wagner’s 55-Van Atta, she finished the fall season with the following stats: 34 innings pitched, 145 batters faced, 28Ks, 10 walks and 15 hits allowed.”

“She also maintains a 3.8 GPA weighted, ranked 25th of 269 in her class and has straight A’s while taking all Honors classes. Curstin is taking dual enrolled English.
All college coaches that offered Curstin a scholarship this fall were impressed not only with her softball skills but also her GPA and the all-around person she is.”

 

*** More verbals:

— Sarah Gailey, a 2015 outfielder with the So Cal Breakers-Imoto team, has committed to UC Riverside as has her teammate Kaylynn Pierce, a 2014 pitcher.

Both visited Riverside last weekend.

— Lena Richards, a 2014 catcher/utility player with Something Special Gold, has committed to Akron.

— The Dallas Tigers 18U team out of Texas has five 2014 players who will play at the next level:

SS/OF Monica Cherry at Texas A&M Commence
1B/3B Maci Brown at West Texas A&M
1B/3B Katie Holehouse at George Mason
MIF Morgan Dufour at St. Edwards
C/3B Megan Haggard at Hill College

 

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EVENT PREVIEW: PGF/SURF CITY TOURNEYS EXPOSURE WORKOUT CAMP

This weekend in Huntington Beach, Calif., the Early Thanksgiving Showcase Tournament will take place with teams from all over the country competing.

Prior to the main competition on Saturday and Sunday, an Exposure Workout Camp will take place and the list of those running includes many of the top names in Southern California club ball:

Mike Stith of the OC Batbuster organization is the Camp Operator and assisting him will be Mark Campbell (OC Batbusters), Marty Tyson (Corona Angels), Bret Denio (Explosion), Gary Haning (OC Batbusters) and Dean Faucett (So Cal Choppers).

Participants will do position specific defensive workouts “designed to show their skills similar to game situations.”

Offensive players will receive a combination of machine and live pitching.

Here are the basic details of the Exposure event which we’ll be covering:

When: Friday, November 22, 2013
Where: Bill Barber Park – Fields 2-4, 4 Civic Center Plaza, Irvine, Calif. 92606
Schedule:
3:15 pm – player check-in
3:30 pm – college coaches check-in
4:00 pm – Exposure Camp

 

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Players, parents and coaches: want to know the best way to get us info on your favorite player? Fill out our Recruit Form link and complete. It comes directly to me (Brentt) and you very likely could see the info used somewhere on our site!

 

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If you’d like to submit information, forward to brentt@studentsports.com. Also, follow us on twitter at @SS_Softball.