Today, we continue our look at the top 100 players in the 2017 class… we're spotlighting 10 each day as we count down from 100 to No. 1.

These players were chosen based on input and feedback from college and club coaches who've seen them play all across the nation.

Criteria for choosing and ranking the players including performances at the club and high school levels and projecting how they will play at the collegiate level.

Today we feature players No. 50 to 41 with standout players from Alabama (2), Arizona, California, Florida (2), Georgia (2), Louisiana and Texas. Pictured above: Kinsey Goelz; pictured on home page banner: Mary Haff (both are from Florida).

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50--Alex Wilcox P… Birmingham Thunderbolts (Mississippi State)
Putting Alex in this spot is the toughest decision we've ever had in compiling the Hot 100's.  The reason is she is a Top 10 talent and was ranked No. 5 in the first iteration of the 2017 class. The purpose of the Hot 100's is to identify and honor elite athletes and project how they will do at the collegiate level.  What complicates that process is when an outstanding player is unable to play at the time the Hot 100 rankings are published, usually because of injury, and we typically drop them lower in the rankings or--in the case of a severe injury--put them in the "Next In" list to see how they respond and rebound from what kept them off the field. In Alex's unique case, her placement here in the middle of the Hot 100 is because she was diagnosed in December with a malignant ovarian tumor and has had surgeries to remove the tumor and treatment including chemo therapy. The cancer has set her back until the end of the Summer and, optimistically, her successful return to action will get her back to the top of the rankings because, when healthy and in uniform, Alex is the top two-way player in the 2017 class.  She had over 30 D1 offers because she can dominate in the circle and change the game with her power bat. Said one coach, "It is nothing for her to roll out of bed, drop three or four bombs in a day, snap off a no-hitter and never stop smiling when she's doing it." Her resume is stellar: she's won state championships in softball and basketball -- four total rings -- and even is a talented volleyball player. Simply put, she's a franchise player who excels against top competition; last summer, for example, she was second on the Bolts 99 team at PGF 16U Nationals with a .320 batting average and led the team with seven RBI and eight hits as the team tied for 3rd place.  We will have one last 2017 Hot 100 update prior to the signing period in November and we're rooting for Alex to make a triumphant return to the fields and the top of the rankings.


49--Abbey Latham C… Birmingham Thunderbolts (Ole Miss)
Abbey is a 6-foot-catcher with a cannon arm and offensively hits for power and average and when she squares up on a softball it sounds like a rifle firing.  She is an imposing figure--not just a big, strong player but a big, strong athlete--with above average speed and physical skills that make her look like a college player now.  As one coach said, "Every team, no matter the sport, has that one player that you always want to be the first player off the bus or to be the first player the opposing team sees." In her first 31 games this year for her Alabama high school, Abbey hit .571 with 42 RBI, 17 doubles and eight home runs with an on-base percentage of .622 and a slugging percentage of 1.140.  Impressively, she's only had two strikeouts in 98 plate appearances.  The backstop also rarely makes mistakes: her fielding percentage this spring is .981 with only three errors in 162 chances.


48--Taryn Antione OF… Texas Glory (LSU)
Taryn Antione is crazy athletic with speed and strength from the left side. She has above average arm strength and can run down any ball on defense. Originally a righty batter, Taryn was converted to the left side to slap and this spring is batting .597 with 30 runs scored for her Louisiana high school. A versatile athlete, Taryn made the All-Cenla Track and Field girls team last spring in the 400-meter run and was first in the state and second nationally in powerlifting in the 132-pound female weight class, even breaking a national record in the dead lift (353 pounds) for the 14-15 age division. It's not just her athleticism that makes her an SEC recruit, she's very coachable and has a strong work ethic. Taryn committed to LSU in December of 2014 after impressing LSU coaches at their camps. Photo: Melinda Martinez, The Town Talk.


47--Samantha Thomas IF/OF… Georgia Impact (Virginia)
Samantha exploded onto the national scene in the last year after showcasing what one coach calls, "The quickest bat I have ever seen."  That bat speed translates into power and she amazed the Georgia high school softball scene by hitting 18 home runs last fall along with a .431 batting average to lead her Buford High team to the Class AAAA state championship, amazingly its ninth straight state title.  She also had a county-best 54 RBI and earned 1st Team All-State honors.  Nicknamed the "Assassin," she's been with the Impact since age 13 and is versatile in that she can play the infield or outfield positions at a high level.  Samantha isn't tall at 5-foot-4, but one scout said, "She hits the ball as hard and as far as anyone I have seen. Sam hits balls that leave a vapor trail."  Defensively she has a great arm and glove and committed to the Cavaliers in October of 2014.


46--Keara Napoli P/IF… EC Bullets (Georgia)
The phrase that everyone uses when describing Keara is "extremely competitive."  She hates to lose and is a fiery battler who was a Georgia All-State pitcher last fall after going 21-4 with a stellar 0.20 ERA.  The Peach State hurler had 163 K's in 105 2/3rd innings as a power pitcher who regularly hits the gun in the mid-to-high 60's.  She doesn't just throw heat, Keara has excellent spins and confidence on the mound.  She comes from a family of athletes as her parents are Crossfitters in the Masters Division, one aunt was a gymnast at Auburn, a cousin was a gymnast at North Carolina State and three other cousins played college lacrosse.  A good motivator in the dugout and outgoing with her teammates, Keara was first seen by the Georgia coaching staff at a Fall 2013 tournament.  After watching her play three games, the Bulldogs were sold and offered her.  She committed in February of 2014, a week after visiting the SEC campus in Athens.


45--Maddy Dwyer P/OF… So Cal Athletics -- Richardson (Stanford)
Maddy has continued to improve her game to become of the top two-way players in the nation.  In the circle she has a rise and screwball, but her change-up is a difference maker.  She also has excellent control and is skilled at keeping the batters off-balance. Maddy was a CalHiSports.com Underclass All-State player as a freshman and sophomore and OCSidelines.com has listed Maddy as the No. 1 player in talent-rich Orange County. She was All-County the last two years including a sophomore campaign that saw her go 19-4 in 2015 with a 1.66 ERA and 152 K's in 139 innings.  Offensively, she hit .439 with eight homers and hasn't missed a beat this year, leading her high school to a Top 5 national ranking in the FloSoftball.com FAB 50.  Maddy committed to Stanford last June.


44--Dani Elder C… Impact Gold-Jackson (Texas A&M)
Dani is one of the top defensive catchers in the country, possessing excellent blocking and framing skills while rarely making an error. She has shown her outstanding talents behind the plate this year by compiling a fielding percentage of .993 as she's only committed two errors in 271 total chances.  Overall, for her three-year prep career Dani has a .988 fielding percentage.  She grew up with a strong softball IQ as her father, Danny, coached her from age five to 14 up until she joined the Impact organization.  Playing for her father in 2013, she was the anchor on a team that won the 14U ASA National Championship.  A standout track athlete in the shot and discuss, Dani committed to Texas A&M before her freshman year for softball.


43--Bella Loomis IF… Firecrackers-Arizona (Arizona State)
Bella is the type of player that immediately draws your attention when you walk up to the field.  She is smooth and fluid on defense, with soft hands and a quick release playing the middle infield.  Offensively, she has impressive gap power for her smaller stature and the ball jumps off her bat.  Bella has 2.7 home-to-first speed and in her first three years of high school ball in Arizona has gone 56-for-57 in steals.  After batting .495 last season and earning Div. 1 All-Arizona honors, she is hitting .426 this spring with at .505 on-base percentage and 25 RBI in her first 30 games this season.


42--Mary Haff P… Rhode Island Thunder (Arkansas)
Mary has exploded onto the national scene as an elite prospect in the last year, throwing a great rise curve and change-up and going 21-3 with 134 K's in 83 innings for the Thunder.  She plays a competitive level of high school ball in Florida and led her team to the 6A title as a freshman and earned All-State honors as a sophomore when she had a regular season ERA of 0.19. This year Mary has led her squad to a 24-2 record and spot in the 7A playoffs as she's 19-2 with 14 shutouts and averaging 12 K's per game. She compiled the most strikeouts of any pitcher at the prestigious Kissimmee Klassic held in the preseason and has already been named as the District Player of the Year. In the playoffs, she's not allowed a run in 25 innings heading into the State Semis. Mary committed to Arkansas last summer after receiving 25 D1 offers including ones from ACC and Big Ten schools.


41--Kinsey Goelz SS/UT… Tampa Mustangs-TJ (Mississippi State)
Kinsey pairs with fellow Hot 100 honoree Myah Moy to give the Mustangs one of the best middle infields in the country in club play.  Daughter of head coach TJ Goelz and older sister to 2020 standout Avery, who already has offers, Kinsey is athletic with a clutch bat and a big-time arm. She has continued to improve, strengthen and lead her team, which won the PGF 16U Nationals last summer as the Florida star got the winning hit in the National Championship game and was the MVP.  This spring, the junior has batted around .500 and had 23 RBI in her first 20 games.  Kinsey committed to Mississippi State this year after she looked at numerous D1 offers from top schools in the ACC and SEC and other major conferences.