Today’s Daily Update looks at a 16U team in SoCal that only has one commitment, but, wow, does this team have a lot of recruiting interest from big-time programs!  We also look at who did well at the Softball Showcase from last weekend, have some verbal info including a video of a recent Pac-12 commit and profile a new product that came out today which could be huge in the recruiting world…

 

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TEAM PROFILE: SO CAL CHOPPERS 16U

The So Cal Choppers organization, which had three different teams operating in the 14U level, deciding to merge them together into one elite team.

In the last 13 months the 16U team has evolved into one of the top teams in the nation at that age level.

“The great thing that this team had over the summer,” explains Co-Head Coach Jim Ziese, “was the fact they were able to be coached by two outstanding D-I players in Madison Shipman at Tennessee and my daughter, Courtney, at catcher/third baseman at Georgia Tech.”

“Just having these college athletes sharing their knowledge of recruiting, how coaches are, what happens on and off the field, was a big bonus for them.”

The team is loaded with talent and through Coach Ziese and Co-Head Coach Bill Shipman—along with the immense attention paid to perhaps the top eighth grader in the country, Alyssa Shipman—the program has pulled outstanding players in from primarily Santa Clarita, Calif. and now from as far away as Huntington Beach, in Orange County.

“The Chopper name itself also draws a lot of attention,” says Ziese.

The team only has one player committed as of today; but within a year will have players going to every major conference in the nation.

“We have been an SEC draw for reason,” marvels Coach Ziese.  “In Colorado during the Independence Day tournaments, we had coaches from at least 10 SEC teams at every game we played.”

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Here’s a player-by-player look at the So Cal Choppers 16U team with comments from Coach Jim Ziese:

— 2B/SS Jade Arslanian (2016, uncommitted)
“Jade is a middle infielder who can also play outfield.  She’s a new addition after Premier, this weekend was her first weekend playing us.  Jade has excellent hands and is a very scrappy hard-working kid who can swing the bat.  She’s a good line drive hitter.”

— C/3B Kelsie Bozart (2016, uncommitted)
“Kelsie is another new addition, she plays the corners very well and is a gap-to-gap line-drive hitter. Thought small in stature, she’ll surprise you with the power she has at the plate.”

— IF/OF Lindsay Clare (2016, uncommitted)
“Lindsay can play anywhere but catcher.  She’s the ultimate utility player and is also short in stature but has a big stick.  She’s being recruited by ASU, North Carolina and has a scheduled visit for San Diego and Boise State.”

— IF/OF Amanda Doyle (2016, LSU)
“Amanda is another kid who can play all four infield and all three outfield positions very well.  Recruiting primarily to play third base at LSU, she can not only hit for average, she can hit for power as well.”

— 3B/UT Cassidy Fitzgerald (2017, uncommitted)
“Cassidy is a big, strong 2017 so she’s one of our younger kids, she plays both corners and outfield and definitely has the strongest arm on our team.  She’s being recruited so far by Fresno State where she’s visited twice.  She definitely hits for power as well.”

— SS/3B Carley Gaskill (2016, uncommitted)
“Carley is a middle infielder, primarily a shortstop and is a new addition from Firecrackers-Rice.  Her first weekend out with the team she put on a hitting display and has definitely created some interest with some schools in her first two months with the team.”

— C/OF Alley Johnson (2016, uncommitted)
“Alley has visited Ohio State and is scheduled to visit Illinois in November.  She is a speedster slapper who is a unique combination of a catcher and outfielder.  She has a strong arm and can surprise you with occasional line drives into the gap.”

— 2B/OF Cayla Kessinger (2016, uncommitted)
“Cayla has been to South Carolina and ASU and will visit Missouri, Northwestern, and Georgia Tech. She has some of the fastest hands in the 2016 class and is a pure lefty hitter.  Cayla has the ability to not only lead our team in average but in home runs as well.”

— SS/UT Alexa Lotito (2015, uncommitted)
“Lexi just joined us coming off of back-to-back ACL injuries and is our only 2015. She is an outstanding talent and will be a great find for a school that has money left over for a ’15 recruit.  She does have an offer from Penn State and she’s a strong, lanky kid who not only fields well, she can also hit for power and average.”

— P/1B Alyssa Loza (2016, uncommitted)
“Alyssa was our No. 1 pitcher this summer and pitched outstanding at Premier.  She’s a true game and wants the ball anytime she can have it.  Alyssa has an outstanding screwball and wicked off-speed curve.  She has interest from a large number of schools.”

— P/1B Veronica “Roni” Lynch (2016, uncommitted)
“Roni is another outstanding pitcher with a go-to pitch of a curveball.  When her change up is working, there isn’t one better in her age group.  Roni has an offer from Boise State and there’s a very good change she’ll commit on her visit in November.”

— C/1B Allysa Shipman (2018, uncommitted)
“If Allysa isn’t the top ’18 recruit, she’s one of the top two or three.  She’ll more than likely commit by Christmas and is looking at LSU, Florida, Tennessee, Texas, Michigan, Oregon, UCLA—those are the schools she’s visited or is visiting—she’s also being pursued by ASU, Missouri, Oklahoma and Alabama. Her sister is Madison Shipman, the senior All-American shortstop at Tennessee.  Ally is an outstanding defensive catcher who is very sound in all fundamentals.  She has the ability as an eight grader playing at the 16U level to call her own game and manage the game very well from behind the plate.  She has a brother who’s a redshirt-freshman offensive lineman for Cal Poly.”

— OF Megan Smith (2016, uncommitted)
“Megan is an outstanding centerfielder who has the ability to run down balls you’d think would never be caught.  She’s a lefty slapper with good speed and also is an excellent bunter. Megan is visiting San Diego State and has interest from UC Santa Barbara.”

— 2B/OF/UT Abby Sweet (2017, uncommitted)
“Abby is our other 2017, she’s an excellent talent who’s getting heavy interest from several big schools.  She has visits scheduled for Ole Miss and Notre Dame in the coming months. Abby is an outstanding hitter who can play second base and all outfield positions.”

— OF/UT Allison Tatnall (2016, uncommitted)
“Allison has narrowed her choices to ASU and Tennessee.  She is a strong, athletic kid who loves to play the game.  She’s a pure lefty swing and has great speed. Allison loves the game and always has a smile on her face.”

— P/1B Harley Wells (2016, uncommitted)
“Harley is a pitcher new to the team, she came over from Cal Thunder after Premier.  She has multiple schools interested in her including ASU.  Harley has good velocity with outstanding movement.  She is very tough to hit.”

 

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EVENT RECAP: THE TCS/FIRECRACKERS SOFTBALL SHOWCASE AT BIG LEAGUE DREAMS

*** I went to the TCS & Firecrackers Softball Showcase this past weekend and felt like a kid in a candy store.  The talent was excellent and kudos to Don Minard of the Firecrackers for running a great event.

Here are the teams who finished undefeated (understanding that this is more about competition and reps, not winning!):

18U

Arizona Cats (5-0)
Arizona Lil Saints Dickson (5-0)
OC Batbusters – Fox (5-0)
Bownet (4-0-1)
Firecrackers-Rico (2-0-3)
Sorcerer Gold (5-0)
OC Batbusters – Gonzalez (5-0)

16U

California Cruisers – Sivers/Rott (4-0-1)
So Cal Breakers – Imoto

 

*** There was a 128-player combine held on Friday which included tests such as home to home, home to first, arm speed, bat speed and exit speed (how fast the ball comes off the bat).

Produced by Real Time Athletes (RTA), the results were intriguing.

For example, one player who testing off the charts was Kelly Martinez, who plays for the Firecrackers-Brashear 16U team.  The 2016 catcher from Yucaipa, Calif. had a 65 mph arm speed time and ran very well including a 11.55 in the home to home.

“Kelly had a bat speed measurement of 80 mph and her exit speed was 65 mph,” explained Bob Surane of RTA.  “She has the potential to be an incredible power hitter.”

I watched Kelly in the game-simulated drills and she was awesome, gunning out every baserunner including one throw from her knees.

She’s a shorter catcher who reminds me of Carlee Wallace on the So Cal A’s (committed to Auburn) in that she’s smooth and has great mechanics.

Not surprisingly, when I talked to her afterwards I found out that the sophomore is talking to Arizona this week and it could lead to her committing.

In this case, the numbers definitely told the right story… Martinez is going to be big-time and her athletic measurements combined with her play on the field showed this.

 

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VIDEO SPOTLIGHT: KRISTINA INOUYE

Last Saturday, we caught up with Kristina Inouye, the 2016 middle infielder from Huntington Beach, Calif. at the Triple Crown Sports Showcase at Big League Dreams and asked the Firecrackers-Rico player about her commitment to Cal.

Here’s what she had to say:

 

 

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VERBAL NEWS:

*** Here are some of the more recent verbals we’ve come across or that have been sent to us:

— C Angela Schmieder (2014, Iowa)… plays for Illinois Chill Gold
— SS Joei Samper (2014, North Dakota State)… plays for Teamsmith-Morgan
— OF Lauren Delgadillo (2014, Sacred Heart)… plays for Teamsmith-Morgan
— 3B Malia Quarles (2017, UCLA)… plays for So Cal Athletics

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SOFTBALL STORE:

Occasionally, we’ll feature some products or services in the softball market we like or, more importantly, think you’ll like… here’s one for today!

 

*** NFCA Softball Recruiting App

Here’s a cool new app that just hit the market and can be found on the iTunes app store and is for the iPhone, iPad and iPod.

It’s FREE and allows athletes to update their recruiting profile on their phone wherever they are (like after a game or tournament).

The product came thanks to a partnership between the NFCA and NCSA, which is powering the app.  What is attractive about the app is the interactivity with college coaches including being able to track their results and even find them at an event.

There’s also info on the recruiting process with tips and suggestions from key softball people like Sue Enquist and Jessica Mendoza.

According to a release sent out today by the NFCA, the app will allow a comparison of a player’s athletic measurable against her peers across the country.

“For the first time in softball history, the collaboration between NFCA and the NCSA provides a centralized location to host a softball athlete’s important key athletic measurable,” the NFCA said today.

“In the future, youth athletes will be able to compare their times against national standards, which are currently being developed by a collaborative partnership of club, high school and college coaches. The app’s connected web presence provides the location for college coaches to then access and filter the information in what’s being referred to as a “National Digital Dashboard.”

And did I mention it’s free? Definitely worth checking out.  Click here for more info…

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TOP UNSIGNED 2014’s

Soon, we’re going to begin a top unsigned seniors list.

If you’d like to recommend a current senior for consideration, send in your info to us at brentt@studentsports.com.  We’ll take stats, honors, accomplishments, recruiting info, photos and promote as appropriate.

 

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