Recruiting Roundup (2/10)

Recruiting Roundup (2/10)

The Recruiting Roundup includes several 2019 Hot 100 commits with recruiting updates!

Feb 10, 2016 by Brentt Eads
Recruiting Roundup (2/10)
It’s been a while since we did our last recruiting news and notes column as we were in the middle of the 2019 Hot 100 craziness the last two weeks!

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It’s been a while since we did our last recruiting news and notes column as we were in the middle of the 2019 Hot 100 craziness the last two weeks!

But a lot has happened and we can only cover a lot of the fun stuff like verbals and rising stars, but first we start off with some sad news…

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One of the most influential softball figures in the East Coast over the last decade plus has been Anthony LaRezza, who helped lead Immaculate Heart Academy in New Jersey to several state and county titles.

LaRezza died last Thursday at age 50 after battling tongue cancer.

One fellow key softball figure in the East said of LaRezza, “This is a big loss to the softball community not just in New Jersey but for the entire Northeast. It's what most of the travel community has been talking about these past two days. It’s a really big loss!”

LaRezza was also involved with the club scene including the NJ Pride organization and Rob Stern who says some great things in an article that was published on NorthJersey.com titled “Softball community stunned at death of coach Anthony LaRezza, 50.

I had talked to Anthony several times and he was always friendly and passionate about softball in New Jersey and the East.  I met him at the 2014 NFCA Convention in Las Vegas and he was so great to talk to.

It’s now wonder those who knew and loved him are in shock—he was a great figure for softball.

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Another tough loss took place in Florida as Riverview High coach Angela Slater lost her year-long battle with cancer. The coach won over 500 career games as well as two state championships.

Said Roger Jones, the Director of the prestigious Kissimmee Klassic high school school tournament, “Angela was a long time supporter and participant of the Kissimmee Klassic and, win or lose, was a class act. She enjoyed playing in Kissimmee where her teams always seemed to step up to another level.”

“Her Klassic family will miss her but she leaves a legacy of success through her players and those who competed against and with her.  Our prayers and hearts go out to all of the Riverview team and her family.”

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Chandler Dennis is headed to the Big Ten.
On a happier note, over the two weeks we were revealing the Hot 100 for the 2019 class, four of the players committed and a fifth committed just last weekend (more on her in a second).

The highest ranked player to commit while we were doing the rankings was pitcher/utility player Chandler Dennis who plays for the Georgia-Impact team coached by Jon Stewart.

Chandler is a strikeout artist who throws in the mid 60’s but really thrives on her curveball.  She also hits well and batted fourth for the Impact.  SEC schools were all over but Michigan showed a lot of love and a trip to the UM elite camp a month sealed the deal.

Chandler said, “It all started when I saw Michigan play in the World Series last year on TV. From the very first time I watched them play, I loved their team spirit.  I've never really had a dream school until I went to the elite camp/unofficial visit they held in January.”

“As soon as I got to meet the coaches, I knew that Michigan was the school for me.  Most people would think of it as scary to go that far away for college, but I feel at home there. I can't wait to continue my education and softball career in Ann Arbor!”

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Another 2019 Hot 100 who committed recently—over this past weekend, in fact—was pitcher Taylor Bachmeyer of the Texas Blaze.

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Taylor will be playing with a fellow Blaze teammate at Ole Miss.
She has the nickname “Big Game Bach” and rises to the level of the competition which has included wins against elite teams from California like the So Cal Choppers and Corona Angels.

She was No. 86 in the Hot 100 and joins Blaze teammate Kinsey Kuhlmann in picking the Rebels.

Kinsey is a shortstop who has all the tools physically plus a great feel and mind for the game.

Nice job of Ole Miss going into Texas and getting a pair of top freshmen.


*** The two latest Blaze commits give them several players who’ve committed recently… here are some others of note:

  • 2019 Taylor Bachmeyer / Pitcher / Ole Miss
  • 2019 Kinsey Kuhlmann / Infield / Ole Miss
  • 2018 Sydney Owens / Infield / Iowa
  • 2017 Savanna Bonola / Infield / UT Arlington
  • 2016 Mackenzie Futrell / Pitcher / Lamar
  • 2018 Bre McElderry / Outfield / UT Tyler
  • 2016 Shannon Klaus / Outfield / Trinity Valley
  • 2017 Amber Gonzales / Infield / UT Tyler

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Cassie is SEC-bound.
A final standout Hot 100 player who pulled the trigger over the weekend: catcher Cassie Lindmark who plays for the Illinois Chill.

Coach Gerry Quinn of the chill is great at not just producing top players, but being a solid judge of talent.  He told us Cassie was a top recruit and as we spoke with other club and college coaches his opinion was validated.

Cassie is a 5-10 catcher and Gerry told FloSoftball: “When coaches walk up to the field the first thing they notice is how well Cassie frames and blocks. Cassie also has outstanding offensive potential and is a middle of the lineup hitter.”


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The Chill have three other players that have top tier talent and will play at the next level.  Remember these names too in the 2019 class with added comments from Coach Quinn:

--- Fiona Girardot – SS
“Great defensive fundamentals and extremely quick bat. Middle of the order hitter for our very strong 14U team. Being recruited by multiple Big 10 teams as well as Miami OH and possibly multiple others that we are still following up on.”  

--- Delaney Bowen – SS
“Played SS on our 16U team last year as an 8th grader and now is her second year at 16u while many in her class are still playing 14U. Can make the spectacular play and is a multi-sport athlete whose overall game continues to develop.”

--- Maggie Finnegan - 2B/OF
“Played a key role on 16U team last year as an 8th grader, contributing versatility on defense and timely hitting on offense. Maggie is a multi-tool player with excellent speed and power at the plate.”


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Finally, we profile a Hot 100-caliber recruit in the 2019 class in Brinaya Bailey who plays for the Georgia Elite Gold – Branch team and is committed to Syracuse.

A lefty both at the plate and throwing, she was first discovered in November 2013 at Scenic City Showcase when she was just a seventh grader!

It was her birthday weekend and her first showcase as well.

Brinaya played for the Worth Cobras at the time and shined against some of the best teams in the Southeast including the Frost Falcons 2000 team.  She went 2-for-2 with three RBI and made some strong defensive plays that attracted the attention of Tennessee coach Marty McDaniel.
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Brinaya on her trip in January that sealed the deal!

She also played well against Tennessee Fury 99, Georgia Impact and the Birmingham Thunderbolts.

Ultimately, the Cobras team folded and Brinaya had to move to a new team. She went to play for Dave Lewis who had just left East Cobb after finishing Top 10 at ASA Nationals and took his team to form the Knockouts.

The team only last one year due to Dave retiring from coaching but Brinaya was able to come in and make an immediate impact being a natural lefty power hitter and first baseman.

The team finished 5th in the state that year as a first year 14U and had really good players including Savannah Stewart, a verbal to LSU, and Daisy Hess, a verbal to Kennesaw State.

The fall of 2014 Brinaya was again in search of a team and decided to play for the newly formed Georgia Elite Gold team which is coached by former Univ. of Georgia player Maya Branch.

A key factor was picking the organization was the other talent which included Jamie Hoover, Brittany Maresette and Amanda Ablan that's now on the 18U Elite team.

That fall Brinaya played at the Southern Force Showcase in Watkinsville, Georgia  which was her first showcase with her team. She hit a bomb against Sparks Elite on 3-2 count with coaches from North Carolina, Missouri and Georgia in attendance.

Her recruiting stock continued to rise after she played in the Rising Stars Showcase in Fort Lauderdale.

During the 2015 summer SEC and ACC colleges watched her closely and at the Atlanta Legacy camp Brinaya had the fastest bat speed measured at 86 mph and time-to-impact at .106.

As a freshman in high school playing varsity for Grayson High (Georgia), she was second in batting average and first in RBI for the team which took second in the region, beating 6A state runner-up Brookewood and losing to eventual state champion Mill Creek 3-2 and 4A champs Buford 302.

Brinaya earned All-County honors and started to narrow her recruiting focus.  She told her Elite coach, Maya Branch that she was interested in Syracuse even though the family is originally from Miami and moved to Georgia when the athlete was eight years old.

Coach Maya had played with Syracuse assistants Alisa Goler and Kristyn Sandberg in college and Syracuse had seen Brinaya at the Southern Force Showcase.

The ‘Cuse staff told Brinaya and her family they needed a true lefty hitter in the 2019 class and were very interested.

However, a planned trip to a Syracuse camp in October was postponed when the athlete sprained her ankle and had to miss three high school games.

Other colleges including Virginia Tech and Illinois started to show interest and she considered visits to Missouri, Boston College, Georgia Tech, Louisville and Tennessee, but the death of her grandmother and great-grandmother a month apart forced the family to cancel the trips.

The one school and camp she didn’t want to miss, according to her father Brian, was Syracuse.

Brinaya visited the school on January 8 through 10 and after talking to the coaches said, “It was like home. “She really liked Coach Mike Bosch and the the direction he wanted to take Syracuse softball program and Brinaya wanted to be apart of it. Coach Bosch really wanted her and she really wanted Syracuse. She verballed at end of the visit.”

And that’s how a Georgia girl originally from Miami ended up choosing a school in New York!