Top 2027 Prospects To Watch In Ohio

In the Buckeye State, Ohio has yet another talented class of softball stars eager to make a push before the biggest recruiting summer of their club softball careers. A successful sophomore season is the first step for prospects to open more doors toward their biggest goal: advancing to the next level of softball at the collegiate level.   As we continue our coverage of Ohio's best youth softball athletes, here are the top 2027 prospects to watch in the state.    Madelyn is a dual-threat player hailing from Painsville, Ohio. Despite standing at just 5-foot-5, she has incredibly quick hands and a powerful swing that allows her to drive the ball well to the left-center field gap and into center field. Madelyn's open stance allows her to connect with middle-to-inside pitches. As her eye at the plate develops, she can start spraying the ball successfully to all parts of the field.   Her calling card, however, is in the circle. Even at her size, Madelyn's fastball idles around 57 MPH with a top speed of 63 MPH. Along with that, her secondary pitches of a curveball, screwball, drop ball, and rise ball all allow her to finesse her way through a lineup.     With three more seasons of high school softball left to go, Kaitlin has already made her presence behind the plate and in the batter's box known. She has a tremendous arm that is nearing 60 MPH with a sub-two second pop time down to second base. Kaitlin is extremely versatile and can provide any school with a strong defensive backstop who can quickly gun down runners. With more focus on cleaner foot work, Kaitlin can develop into one of the better arms in Ohio.   At the plate, her powerful stance allows her to crowd the plate and get the pitch she wants. From there, it's a quick explosion to the ball that can one day lead her to be an extra-base hits machine.     Whitney is already on the fast track to what could be a highly-decorated college career. The 5-foot-11 first baseman and pitcher just attended a camp at the University of Tennessee and was invited for a second straight year to attend the USA Softball High Performance Program National Selection Event in Vero Beach, Florida. It makes sense, given that she led all Ohio players in stolen bases with 50, while also batting .667 with 23 RBI and eight doubles.   In the circle, Davis went 9-4 for Berkshire with 98 strikeouts to just 39 walks in 91.2 innings. It's hard to find where the slap-hitting Davis needs to improve, but she's already working on generating more power at the plate so those eight doubles can turn into home runs.     Annie is a right-handed pitcher who also plays first base for Green High School and the Ohio Wolfpack. She has a consistent swing that allows her to spray the ball to all fields, and does a tremendous job keeping her barrel in the zone for as long as possible. She is a versatile infielder who can lock down first base, and couples that ability with arm strength that can consistently improve throughout the rest of her high school career.   In the circle, Annie hides the ball well and zips in her six pitches from a low arm angle. Despite standing at 5-foot-7, her strong extension quickly gets the ball across the plate. She can successfully locate her fastball, while also working low and away to right-handed batters with her offspeed pitches, especially her changeup.     Austintown-Fitch's Kaliana Ray dominated the 2024 high school season, bursting onto the scene with a .740 batting average, the second-best in the state and 31st-best in the entire country. She also ranked third in the state in on-base percentage (.774) and third in stolen bases with 37, earning First-Team All-American honors from the National Fastpich Coaches Association following her record-setting year.   The Falcons and Outlaws share a strong, speedy left-handed batter who simply finds a way to get on base. Whether it's laying down a bunt and utilizing her technical slap-hitting approach or rearing back with a smooth swing and finding a gap, Ray is already one of the most technically sound and developed players in Ohio.

In the Buckeye State, Ohio has yet another talented class of softball stars eager to make a push before the biggest recruiting summer of their club softball careers. A successful sophomore season is the first step for prospects to open more doors toward their biggest goal: advancing to the next level of softball at the collegiate level.