Monday wrapped up the three days of this year's Louisville Slugger Hit Club as the nine players (two had to leave for college Sunday night) heard from one of the best mental edge speakers in the world, met and worked out with an Olympic Gold Medalist and were honored at the PGF Opening Ceremony for Week 2 of Nationals covering 16U and 14U competition…

First, a list of this year's Hit Club honorees:

Elissa Brown (Birmingham Thunderbolts)--University of Alabama
Nicole "Sis" Bates (Firecrackers-Rico)--University of Washington
Nicole Mendes (Diamond Sports Hotshots)--University of Oklahoma
Hannah Edwards (PA Chaos)--University of Pittsburgh
Mackenzie Boesel (So Cal A's-Richardson)--University of South Carolina
Kayla Konwent (Illinois Chill Gold)--University of Wisconsin
Aaliyah Jordan (Corona Angels)--UCLA
Amanda Doyle (So Cal Choppers-Fausett)--LSU
Dejah Mulipola (OC Batbusters-Stith)--University of Arizona
Shannon Rhodes (Texas Glory-Shelton)--University of Oregon
Jessica Harper (So Cal Choppers-Fausett)--University of Arizona


***

Here's a recap of the third day, Monday August 1, and some of the highlights of the action and recognition these top 2016 grads received…

The final day of the 2016 Louisville Slugger Hit Club kicked off with a breakfast at a favorite hot spot in Huntington Beach--Bread Crumb Ohana Café, famous for its French toast--before the players returned to PGF headquarters just a few minutes away to hear from one of the most renowned mental edge and sports psychiatrists in the nation, Ken Rivizza, who has worked with everyone from the U.S. Olympic softball teams to MLB stars like Mike Trout and Albert Pujols (who the Hit Clubbers got to see in action yesterday).

Ravizza spent more than an hour talking to the elite 2016 grads about everything from focus to breathing and his comments and insights were one of the favorite parts of the event for the soon-to-be college freshman (see their comments below).

Shortly after, legendary softball player Amanda Freed came in and spoke to the players as they ate lunch; she shared stories of her famed career which including five championships: high school, club, college (UCLA), a Gold Medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics, and a pro championship.

Freed shared stories of her time with the Olympic team in Greece and also talked about what it was like to play a year of pro ball in Japan.

After lunch, the players went just a block or two away to the Pure Fastpitch facility where they worked in the cages doing hitting drills while Freed observed and took notes.  She gave pointers to each player and shared her thoughts on each player's strengths, telling the group afterwards: "You all have what it takes to play at the next level, there isn't anything missing in your game that would hold you back."

With an hour-plus to spare in the afternoon, the group returned to their hotel to get ready for the final activities of the night--an appearance at the PGF Opening Ceremony for the 16U and 14U National Championships.

Jennie Ritter of Louisville Slugger and Wilson introduced each Hit Club player onstage in front of several thousand young PGF Nationals players who someday hope to be following in the path of this year's Hit Club honorees.

Part of the Opening Ceremonies included a performance by Emblem3, a young band that finished 4th in the second season of "The X Factor USA" competition and a highlight for the softball players was having their pictures taken backstage with the three-person band.

To wrap up the three-day event, the group had a final dinner at BJ's Restaurant in Huntington Beach where each member of the Hit Club voted for Best Teammate, Best Hitter and Hit Club MVP.  We'll have the results of the voting, plus final recap thoughts and the Amanda Freed player-by-player evaluations soon!

Congratulations to the members of the 2016 Louisville Slugger Hit Club!  Now, it's on to college success for them and for the Class of 2017 top hitters… you're on the clock!

[album albumid="450258"]

Here are the some of the thoughts of the Hit Clubbers after Day 3 concluded as to what they enjoyed the most:

 "My favorite part of today was finally getting to hit. It was cool being able to watch the best hitters in the country and learn from them." - Elissa Brown

"My favorite part of Monday was getting to hear from Ken Ravizza. He really put things into perspective for me." -- Nicole Bates

"Ken Ravizzio was the best today! Working with someone with all the accolades you can imagine was unbelievable." -- Shannon Rhodes

"My favorite part about today was Ken Ravizza. What he was saying about being "all in" really resonated with me. I'm definitely going to add that to my routine." -- Nicole Mendes

"My favorite part of the third day of hit club was listening to Ken Ravizza talk. He gave good advice on how to approach the game, especially the hitting side. He made a point that we weren't always going to feel good or be at our best but that we need to give 100% of what we have." - Mackenzie Boesel

"My favorite part was meeting Ken Ravizza to discuss the mental game. I'm definitely going to put his techniques and theories into use when I'm at Pitt." - Hannah Edwards

"My favorite part of today was listening to the great Ken Ravizza! He gave me a different look at the mental side of softball and made me realize I need to take time out of my workouts to work on my mental game!" - Jessica Harper

"My favorite part was talking with Ken Ravizza. He had so much insight on the mental part of the game." - Amanda Doyle

"My favorite activity today was listening to Ken Ravizza speak because he spoke about the mental game which I was able to learn from not only as a player, but as a person as well." - Dejah Mulipola

***

Coming up soon: analysis of each Hit Clubber in the batting cages and awards including MVP!