Top 2029 Prospects To Watch In Virginia

Virginia has the best of all worlds, with a varied climate, access to major cities and nine NCAA Division I softball teams—including two strong Atlantic Coast Conference programs and two mid-major powerhouses in Liberty and James Madison. It also produces a steady pipeline of young softball stars to the college ranks every year, from the Washington D.C. area to the Hampton Roads region and everywhere in between.   The class of 2029 is looking like one of Virginia's strongest groups yet. Below, Prep Softball highlights five 2029 prospects from Virginia who college coaches will want to be sure not to miss.    It takes a lot of maturity to be a starting catcher in high school as an eighth grader, even at the junior varsity level. But that's the role [player_tooltip player_id='104448' first='Elliana' last='Maldonado'] filled last spring, at least until she missed more than a month with a broken finger. She went 4-for-4 in her first game after returning from the injury, nearly matching a 5-for-5 performance in her first high school game. Maldonado is not afraid to attack early in the count and handles inside pitches well, pulling her hands in and muscling the ball through the infield. She can also fight off balls on the outer half and slice them to the opposite field, and has a strong, accurate arm from behind the plate.     [player_tooltip player_id='105429' first='Dera' last='Loudy'] is on her way to becoming a can't-miss prospect. She can play third base, shortstop and center field, reacting quickly to make diving catches on sharply-hit balls at the hot corner and having her pitcher's back on deflected grounders. Loudy also charges slowly-hit ground balls well and takes control on pop-ups when multiple players are in the vicinity. Offensively, she takes a full swing with impressive bat speed and can hit line-drive rockets that carry over the fence. Loudy has been busy on the camp circuit this year, visiting Virginia, Clemson, South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida State and North Carolina, among others. She was part of the USA Softball High Performance Program earlier this year. Loudy also plays volleyball and takes her academics seriously, carrying a 4.0 GPA.     Tenley Rendell is a true utility player who can be plugged in at second base, shortstop, third base or anywhere in the outfield. In her final summer before moving up to 16U this year, Rendell slashed .382/.418/.821 with eight doubles, eight triples, nine home runs and 37 runs batted in. She was also successful on all 23 of her stolen base attempts. Pitches on the outer part of the strike zone to Rendell are practically asking to be crushed, as she extends her arms with a nice, easy swing and elevates the ball to all parts of the field. The raw power is obvious and extremely advanced for her age, and she uses long, graceful strides as an outstanding baserunner as well. Rendell's speed also serves her well in the field, giving her excellent range in the outfield and up the middle. She hit .654 with a 2.304 OPS as an eighth grader for her junior varsity high school team and has reached an exit velocity of 77 miles per hour, with her overhand throw clocked at 72 mph.     Madeline Bryant is in the midst of a stellar fall season. In six games at a September tournament in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, Bryant batted .538 with a .625 on-base percentage, three doubles and nine runs scored. That followed a tournament earlier that month in which she hit .500 while playing third base, shortstop, left field and right field. And in October, Bryant helped her team win the USA Softball Super Select tournament in Richmond, going 7-for-13 with a 1.486 OPS and seven RBI. Her swing is smooth and clean, generating pull-side power, and she has the alertness to take an extra base on bobbled balls and throws back to the infield. Bryant hit her first home run in June, plays solid defense and also made her school's freshman volleyball team this fall.     Claire Larson hit her first-ever home run at the Madison Small Memorial tournament in October, extending her arms to reach a pitch on the outside edge and launching a towering blast over the wall in left-center field. She does a good job staying through the ball on her swing, especially on balls up in the zone. Larson is primarily a catcher and has a powerful arm, and while she typically plays the outfield when not behind the plate, she can also fill in at third base, where her arm strength is also a plus. She can rack up extra-base hits with the best prospects in her class, but will also drop down a well-placed sacrifice bunt to give her teammates a chance to drive in runs.

Virginia has the best of all worlds, with a varied climate, access to major cities and nine NCAA Division I softball teams—including two strong Atlantic Coast Conference programs and two mid-major powerhouses in Liberty and James Madison. It also produces a steady pipeline of young softball stars to the college ranks every year, from the Washington D.C. area to the Hampton Roads region and everywhere in between.