We’re spotlighting 10 each day on the countdown from No. 100 to No. 1, and there will be a lot of changes — as many as 25 players in the updated version will be new!

We’ll announce the top 10 of the class on Friday, January 19, and shortly after will profile the No. 1 player. 

These 2019 honorees were chosen based on input and feedback from college and club coaches as well as our own FloSoftball event and in-person observations. 

Criteria for choosing and ranking the players includes 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 51 who come from Arkansas, California (2), Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Oklahoma.

See 2019 Hot List

50 | Lauren Esman 1B/P | Michigan Finesse—Dreher (Michigan)

Known to her teammates as “Lo,” this 5-foot-10 lefty is already chasing home run records, like another Lo we know. With 21 dingers for her Gull Lake (Richland, MI) High School, she was just one shy of the all-time state record for Michigan. That stat, combined with a .675 average, a 2.02 ERA in the circle; she mowed down 178 batters for strikeouts earning her the Kalamazoo Gazette Softball Player of the Year title and 2017 MaxPreps Underclass All-American Honors as an infielder. Every coach she’s player for calls her a hard worker, inspiring her team to push themselves. Last summer, she led Michigan Finesse in pitching and hitting, finishing fifth at the Triple Crown Nationals in Austin, Texas. During the fall season, she posted six more home runs and a 1.30 ERA against some of the best teams in the country. On a solid development path, Esman will shine in the Wolverine’s strong program. 

49 | Mya Rodriguez MIF | Explosion—Denio (Ohio State)

Playing up an age division on Bret Denio’s 18U Explosion team, Rodriguez batted just shy of .600 last summer including PGF Nationals showing her tenacity for the game. She’s a slick-fielding, rangy infielder who’s got softball sense to spare and an arm that can make the play from the deep in the hole. Known for her gap hitting skills, Rodriguez produces her share of line shots, in fact at PGF, she batted .571 driving in nine RBIs. She committed to The Ohio State University in May of her freshman year. She started all 36 games of her sophomore year and grabbed the offensive player of the year award on her Orange Lutheran (Orange, CA) High Team. She was also first-team all-league and first-team all-county, thanks to .446 average, 36 RBIs, and nine stolen bases in as many attempts. Known as a determined player with a strong work ethic, this future Buckeye is consistently improving her year-to-year stats.

48 | Paige Cook IF | East Cobb Bullets—Schnute (Mississippi State)

Called “almost impossible to strike out,” Cook is a pitcher’s nightmare. She’s strong: squatting 335 pounds at winter workouts. She’s got some speed running a solid 2.9 from home to first. Cook is consistent: every year, her stats are solid and impressive leading both her high school and her stacked East Cobb Schnute club team in nearly every offensive category. She’s a pure hitter who puts the ball in play with power and can drive it out of the park. She hit .527 at Habersham Central (Mt. Airy, GA) this season, leading the team in extra base hits and stolen bases as she picked up all-region and all-state honors. After garnering offers from several SEC schools, Cook ultimately found a home on Vann Stuedeman’s Mississippi State squad in November of 2015. 

47 | Mia Buffano OF | Santa Fe Inferno Nowling (Florida)

Buffano put her Palm Harbor University (FL) High School team back in the playoffs after a 12-year drought last season. She’s a solid five-tool athlete who consistently hits over .400 at both the club and high school levels. Her eight home runs during her high school season led her to multiple awards in a Florida region stacked with softball talent: Miracle Sports First-Team All-State, Tampa Bay Times All Tampa Bay First Team, and All-North Pinellas first-team. Her coaches rely on her leadership; her ability to lift the entire team is just one of the intangibles Buffano brings to the game. Buffano’s 2.7 home-to-first speed, her strong overhand velocity from the outfield, strong leadership skills and that signature aggressive mentality on the base paths make this future Gator the total package that Walton looks for in his recruits. 

46 | Emmy Blane SS/C | Louisville Lady Sluggers (Kentucky)

A standout shortstop known for her 70-plus mph overhand velocity, Blane has incredible instincts that seasoned shortstops develop when getting consistent high-level reps. With the Louisville Lady Sluggers, she was an instrumental part of their USA Softball J.O. Cup win last summer, providing near-flawless defense to captured the title. Anticipated to be a shortstop with a ton of upside, this future Wildcat impressed Rachel Lawson and committed to University of Kentucky in the summer of 2016. No stranger to big games, Blane was also a member of Southern Force Carroll who won the 14U ASA National Championship in 2014 and the 12U ASA Southern National. In her sophomore season for Christian County (Hopkinsville, KY) High, she drove six balls out of the park and has been a three-time all-region player. From 2014 through 2017, she’s led her high school in batting average. This competitive shortstop is expected to make an early impact, even in the stacked SEC.

45 | EC Taylor OF | Birmingham Thunderbolts (Florida)

Taylor has been a high-profile national recruit since the 7th grade when she had a dozen top 25-caliber programs after her because of her track speed and athleticism. She’s a deadly combination of explosive quickness from the left side with the ability to play small ball, drive the ball deep, and turn singles into doubles or sometimes triples. After strong club play at a young age which included an ASA/USA 12U “A” National Championship in 2014, Taylor didn’t miss a beat at the prep level either as she earned All-State honors as a freshman and came back in 2017 to lead her St. Benedict at Auburndale (Cordova, TN) to the final eight in the Tennessee Div. II Class AA state playoffs and earned all-metro honors for her high on-base percentage and great defensive play in the outfield. Taylor, whose real name is Emma Claire, actually lives in Marion, Arkansas — 10 minutes from the border from the Memphis, Tennessee, area where her school is located. She picked the Gators in the 8th grade after heavy interest from Big 12, Big Ten, ACC and other SEC programs.

44 | Karli Petty IF | Gametime Stars (Oklahoma State)

Petty’s stock continues to rise and don’t be surprised if she’s a top 20 or higher player when the final 2019 Hot 100 is rolled out. She hit .602 with a .668 on-base percentage for the Stars this past year with 16 home runs and even stole 21 of 22 base attempts. Petty is a leadoff hitter with great power and a triple threat in the truest sense as she will hit according to what the defense gives her. Defensively, she plays third base exceptionally well and can also play center field when needed as her speed allows her to cover a lot of ground. The Oklahoma junior was a key cog in the Stars placing second this past summer at the USA Softball J.O. Cup where she played lights out at third base. Petty also had a breakout season for Southmoore (OK) High as she batted .577 with a .656 on-base percentage to with 24 steals on 25 attempts to earn first-team all-conference and all-big city honors. One notable club coach said, “I have been coaching softball for (almost 20) years and she is the one player I would want to build a team around.”

43 | Farrah Steffany P/UT | OC Batbusters – Stith (Arizona)

Steffany missed most of the summer and fall with a hip injury suffered in her last game of the year at Vista (CA) Hall where she earned All-CIF honors after batting .391 with 10 home runs and recording 125 Ks in 100 innings. She returned late in the fall and showed the flashes of brilliance that made her one of the top pitches in her class early on. Steffany can hit speeds up to 68 and throws a heavy ball. A hard down-ball pitcher, her upside is great and if she can master her change, off-speed curve and rise, the San Diego-area hurler could be a franchise player at the next level. Steffany has pitched a ton against the best 18U club teams in the country and two years ago was dominant in leading Mark Campbell’s 14U team to a PGF national championship. She had heavy interest from most of the Pac-12 as well as Big 12 programs like Oklahoma before she decided to commit to Arizona in September of 2016. 

42 | Ashley Schultz C/3B | Beverly Bandits (Northwestern)

Schultz is a big and strong catcher who can also play the corner positions and according to one coach, “swings the bat as well as anybody.” The Oswego East (Oswego, IL) High junior has excellent hand-eye coordination and can go yard and hit for average too. She is half of the family battery which includes her older sister, Emily, a senior pitcher committed to Loyola-Chicago. As a freshman, Schultz helped her high school team advance to the Class 4A Sectional semis and, in the final loss, went 3-for-4 with an RBI and in 2017 led her team to the Class 4A Regional finals where she had an RBI single and a walk. Her younger sibling committed to the Big Ten Wildcats in November of 2016 and will be just five miles from her sister’s college and the two will get to face each other yearly for bragging rights at the family dinner table.

41 | Abby Herbst 1B/P | Louisville Lady Sluggers (Wisconsin)

Some coaches feel Herbst is one of the best — if not the best — two-way players in that she can throw a shutout and also beat you with a walk-off home run, which is what she did in a high school playoff game. As a sophomore against many elite 18U teams, she held her own in the circle with a sub-2.00 ERA and as a high school pitcher for Center Grove (Greenwood, IN) High she earned Second-Team FloSoftball All-American status as a freshman and over the past two years has gone a spectacular 29-2 with a 1.11 ERA. Offensively, she’s a prolific power hitter who also leads the team in batting average and, as a line drive hitter, Herbst can hit the ball a mile and this fall had a couple of 290-foot blasts in Atlanta. Said one coach, “Abby is exactly who you want up with two outs, bottom of the seventh and the winning run in scoring position.” In high school ball, she batted .625 with 19 doubles and 48 RBIs to earn all-conference honors. This past fall she batted .415 with six home runs in three tournaments and was 6-1 in the circle. She picked the Badgers over heavy interest from Notre Dame, Big Ten, Pac-12, and SEC programs.