In the spring I profiled one of the top teams in Florida, the Tampa Mustangs coached by T.J. Goelz.

Here’s the link to that profile.

Coach Goelz had led the team last summer to a runner-up finish at the ASA/USA 14U Nationals and had another great run this summer, albeit at the 16U level.

He sent me a great note today recapping the Mustangs’ summer and the accomplishments of several of his players… here’s what he had to say:

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Just wanted to give you an update on our team.  I believe we lived up to our expectations after the article we did for you and Student Sports last April.

We came in 3rd at the Independence Day Tournament in Boulder, won the Rising Stars Gold Superpool, went 4-0 at the Atlanta Legacy and came in 2nd (again) at ASA Nationals.

We had four more girls verbal and four more with offers pending.   It was a solid summer.

Here are some player notes:

*** Roster wise, after playing with us at Colorado IDT and ASA Nationals, 2016 P/OF Cassidy Davis joins us fulltime.  Cassidy is an outstanding 2016 recruit who comes from the Florida Fire organization.  Cassidy is a tall, strong kid who went 6-0 on the mound at ASA Nationals and hit 65 mph on the radar guns.

She also hit .417 for us at Nationals with a home run and 5 RBI.  At the IDT in Colorado, she hit .500 with four home runs and 15 RBI.  She will be an excellent addition to our pitching staff and lineup. She also recently scored a 32 on her ACT test. She should certainly be a consideration for Hot 100 2016 and is uncommitted with several offers.

*** Also for 2016, you had included Bethaney Keen in an article “5 soph. infielders to watch” earlier this year. Bethaney, a USF verbal, tore it up this summer!  At the IDT in Colorado she hit .485 with three HRs, 11 RBI and 14 runs scored out of our leadoff spot.  At ASA Nationals she was insane, leading our team back to the National Championship game.  Bethaney hit  .657, with four home runs, nine doubles, 15 RBI, and 16 runs scored.  At one point, she was 20-for-25 – an unbelievable performance which got her strong looks from the USA JO recruiters.

*** Maddie Biggs, our 2016 catcher had an outstanding summer as well deserving Hot 100 consideration.  At the IDT, she was her usual outstanding defensively and also hit .414 with two home runs, and a .514 OBP.  She got the attention of all the opposing coaches and teams we played as an outstanding player.  At ASA Nationals, she hit .519 with 4 doubles, 9 RBI and a .606 OBP.   She played her best, against the best. Maddie has verbaled to Palm Beach Atlantic University after a visit this past summer – and by the way, is a great kid. She gives lessons locally to help pay for her travel ball expenses and is now volunteering her time to help coach a rec ball team just to “give back” A quality, quality kid.

*** Two other 2016s: Kyra Klarkowski (a verbal to UCF) and Hannah Carlton (verbal to Palm Beach Atlantic) had solid summers for us as well.

*** Our last 2016, Kylie Toler is uncommited at this point.  She is a versatile player with an outstanding arm and solid bat who can play 8 of 9 positions on the field.  She plays 3B and catcher for us and has taken a few unofficial visits but is still weighing her options.

*** The rest of our team consists of 2017s including two who are committed and had great summers: SS/UT Kinsey Goelz (USF) and 3B Kaylee Misiti (Central Florida).  We’ll talk about them in the future.

We are finalizing our Fall schedule and looking forward to another great season!

 

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As a bonus to our growing list of subscribers, here’s a bonus: the player-by-player rundown from that April 23, 2014 article where we highlighted each member of the Mustangs…

The Tampa Mustangs-TJ 16U team was the ASA 14U runner-up in 2013. Two players on the team, which is comprised mostly of freshman, have committed with many more expected to be heavily recruited and commit in the next year or two.

Here’s a player-by-player look at the squad with comments by Head Coach T.J. Goelz:

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— OF/2B Denali Schappacher (2017, uncommitted)
“’Schoppy’ is a spark plug for our team. She slaps, bunts, power slaps and hits from the left side and does a great job at reading the defense to decide her plan of attack. Great speed and a very intelligent baserunner. Defensively she tracks the ball extremely well in the outfield and has loads of outfield assists with a solid and very accurate arm. Can play a steady 2B as well. Great attitude and a great team player. “

— SS/UT Kinsey Goelz (2017, South Florida)
“Kinsey is an extremely athletic player with a very strong arm who can play anywhere on the infield and in the outfield. She is a very good hitter with gap to gap power and has very good speed. She is an unselfish player who understands the game very well and has an intense desire to win. One of the hardest working kids out there on and off the field.”

— LHP/OF Logan Newton (2017, uncommitted)
“Logan is an outstanding left-handed pitcher/athlete. She is blessed with very good velocity and outstanding movement on her pitches. She is one of the best defensive pitchers in the game and is a very smart player. Logan thrives in big-game situations and wants the ball. She is also a very solid outfielder and hitter with good speed on the bases. She will do both for our team.”

— 3B/C/UT Kylie Toler (2016,uncommitted)
“Kylie can play 8 of the 9 positions on the field. She has some of the best physical tools on our team and has plenty of upside in her development. She plays a very solid 3B with an outstanding arm. She is also a catcher for us and does a solid job behind the plate –especially strong at throwing out and picking off baserunners. She can hit the ball to all fields and is a tough out with good speed.”

— 2B/UT Myah Moy (2017, uncommitted)
“Myah is a gamer! She is an outstanding hitter who hits for average and power from the right side, and is fast enough to slap and bunt for a hit from the left side. Just an outstanding athlete with a pure love for the game that shows all the time. Defensively she is our starting second baseman, who with Kinsey at short, Kyra in center, and Maddie at catchermakes our team one of the best in the country ‘up the middle defensively’. Myah is also an excellent catcher and can play 8 of nine positions at a very high level.”

— OF/SS Kyra Klarkowski (2016,uncommitted)
“Kyra is a five-tool player: Hits for average, hits for power, excellent fielder, excellent arm strength and excellent speed. She is one of the best defensive outfielders in the country. She has outstanding range and an amazingly accurate and strong throwing arm. Kyra is very good hitter with power and speed. A tenacious competitor with a strong desire to win. Kyra is also a top-level basketball player but recently decided to focus full-time on softball. We are very excited to see how all the extra practice time she will have now fosters her growth and development as a softball player.”

— 1B/OF Bethaney Keen (2016, South Florida)
“’BK’ is a pro hitter. She has an absolute command of the batters box and is an extremely tough out. She hits for high average and power, and hits to all fields. Defensively, she is an outstanding first baseman with excellent footwork around the bag and a very strong throwing arm. In the OF, she reads the ball very well and uses her strong arm to gun down runners. A very passionate player with a deep love of the game and winning.”

— RHP Lexi Phelps (2017, uncommitted)
“Lexi is a solid RHP who has an excellent demeanor and presence on the mound. She is unfazed by pressure and works very fast which keeps her defense in the game. She throws 4 pitches very well for strikes and is working on a 5^th. Her velocity continues to improve as she gets stronger. Lexi is also a solid hitter at the plate with good pop.“

— 3B/OF Kaylee Misiti (2017, uncommitted)
“Kaylee is an outstanding hitter. She has big-time power to all fields and hits for a very high average. She leads our team in HR and RBIs. Kaylee is also very deceptive on the bases. She has been first or second on our team in steals every year and runs the bases hard and aggressively. Kaylee is very agile defensively and covers a lot of ground at third base. She fields a bunt very well and makes all the routine plays. She can also play a steady outfield and is athletic enough to play second or first base if needed.

— C/2B Maddie Biggs (2016,uncommitted)
“Maddie is one of the best catchers in the country. She has an outstanding arm and blocks the balls better than anyone I have seen. She receives the ball very well and does a great job managing the game and our pitchers. Maddie is also an offensive weapon. She is a pure hitter who hits gap to gap. Maddie has an outstanding command of the strike zone and gets on base for us at a very high percentage. She is a outstanding young lady – whoever signs her will be getting a huge asset to their school on and off the field.”

— OF/UT Hannah Carlton (2016 uncommitted)
“Hannah is new to our team this season and we are excited to bring her in. Hannah is a very good athlete who can play many positions including OF, SS and C. She can hit very well to all fields and has power too. Her footwork defensively and strong arm caught our attention right away and shows her athleticism.”

— 1B/3B Kasi Shaffer (2017, uncommitted)
“Kasi is an outstanding hitter with huge power and hits for high average to all fields. She batted .550 at ASA Nationals last summer and thrived in the big game atmosphere. She is a very tough out who knows the strikezone very well. Kasi is a solid defensive first baseman and third baseman. She has a strong desire to win and works very hard on all aspects of her game.”

— P Sylvia Welsh (2017, uncommitted)
“Sylvia is an outstanding RHP who went 6-0 at ASA Nationals last summer. She thrives in big games and spins it as good as anyone in the country. Her velocity continues to improve each season as she is working hard to get stronger. Sylvia is a great teammate who loves the game and loves to win. She throws six pitches for strikes at anytime. Excellent command and mound presence.”