Five 2028s Who Used Summer Showcases To Boost Their Stock

College coaches are just starting to formally reach out to recruits from the class of 2027, but it will be the class of 2028's turn before they know it. This summer presented a huge opportunity for 2028 prospects to raise their profiles before entering their sophomore high school seasons, and many of them have put themselves in a position to hear from a lot of big-time programs next year.   Below, Prep Softball highlights five class of 2028 recruits who used summer showcases to boost their stock.    Kennedy Coplen's freshman season of varsity softball did not go as well as she would have liked, but her tools are clear to anyone who has watched her play, and she is coming off an excellent summer with her travel team. Coplen has a quick, explosive swing with home run power to center field, and she also has impressive range and a strong, accurate arm at third base. Her offensive game is not just predicated on extra-base hits—she can also rip line drives through the infield and surprise the defense by dropping down a bunt for a hit. Coplen can also play both middle infield spots and in the outfield, where she tracks down fly balls well. She is a standout in the classroom as well, with a 4.0 unweighted GPA.     Ava Perrucci is a two-way standout with the potential to be one of the top prospects in her class from the Mid-Atlantic region. She got off to a fantastic start as a high school freshman, anchoring her team's lineup and throwing smoke out of the bullpen as a relief ace. Perrucci mixes speeds well in the circle and has strong lateral movement on her breaking pitches, as well as a good drop ball and changeup. Offensively, she makes pitchers uncomfortable by standing close to home plate, and she will pull her hands in on inside pitches to drive them over the fence to the pull side. Perrucci will also wait back a beat on pitches over the heart of the plate and hit them hard the opposite way. At Triple Crown Nationals in July, Perrucci hit .588 with a home run and posted a 1.98 ERA in 17 2/3 innings pitched.     Tinley Goodson is coming off a spectacular freshman high school campaign in the Hampton Roads region of southeast Virginia, batting .462 in 21 games with more walks than strikeouts as well as eight doubles, four triples, 32 runs scored and 26 RBI for a 1.211 OPS. She also stole 17 bases while playing solid defense all over the infield. What Goodson lacks in home run power, she makes up for by hitting hard line drives and ground balls that force infielders to be quick on their feet and contend with her speed. She also bunts for base hits with regularity, even while batting right-handed, and carries a 4.21 GPA. Goodson has attended camps at Clemson, Virginia, Tennessee, Virginia Tech and North Carolina State.     Gabby Jones started her high school career with a solid season, hitting .301 with seven doubles and an .829 OPS in 27 games. She is already one of the best defensive catchers in her class, and if a runner strays too far off her base, Jones will fire behind her and frequently steal an out. She has a powerful, accurate arm paired with outstanding instincts from behind the plate, and she also is adept at blocking balls in the dirt to prevent runners from advancing. Jones is also a strong pitch framer and puts herself in the optimal position to apply the tag on runners coming home without getting called for obstruction. Primarily a third baseman when she is not catching, Jones will charge in on bunts and slap hits, and she uses her arm to throw out even the speediest of baserunners. Her bat started to come along over the summer, as she batted .500 at the 18U PGF Tournament in July.     Madden Lutze is already one of the strongest two-way players in her class and thrived on both sides of the ball last spring. She hit .464 in 20 games with 29 runs scored, seven doubles, four triples, two home runs and more walks than strikeouts, to go along with 12 stolen bases. She also posted a 1.11 ERA in 38 innings pitched with 60 strikeouts against just 13 walks, holding opponents to a .149 batting average and .231 on-base percentage. Lutze kept up that high-level production over the summer, batting .500 at a June tournament in Georgia with two doubles, a triple and no strikeouts. Her spray chart spans the entire field with impressive exit velocities, and she fields her position exceptionally well in the circle, with quick reflexes and a steady glove.

College coaches are just starting to formally reach out to recruits from the class of 2027, but it will be the class of 2028's turn before they know it. This summer presented a huge opportunity for 2028 prospects to raise their profiles before entering their sophomore high school seasons, and many of them have put themselves in a position to hear from a lot of big-time programs next year.