Top 2027 Prospects To Watch In Illinois

Illinois had a large crop of high school freshmen make huge impacts for their schools last spring, and their stocks are only going to keep rising heading into their sophomore seasons before recruiting begins in earnest next fall. From Chicago and its suburbs to central and southern Illinois, the Land of Lincoln boasts many top prospects in the class of 2027 on whom college coaches are not going to want to miss out.   Below, Prep Softball highlights five top 2027 recruits in Illinois.    Lucero put up outstanding numbers as a freshman, slashing .476/.550/.845 in 26 games with 39 runs scored, 31 RBI, 11 doubles, four triples and four home runs to go along with eight stolen bases. She hit three homers in two games on the same day in late March, and hit safely in 16 out of 17 games down the stretch. Primarily a shortstop, Lucero did not pitch last spring at the high school level but does on occasion for her club team, topping out at 55 miles per hour. Lucero was named team MVP and was an all-conference selection. She attended camps at Northwestern and Illinois-Chicago this fall.     Heimbuch plays all over the diamond, but primarily at catcher, shortstop and in the outfield. In 31 games, she hit .366 as a freshman with 13 stolen bases, making just two errors in the field on 95 chances. Heimbuch had back-to-back multi-hit games in the postseason to help St. Charles North win the IHSA Class 4A state championship. A left-handed bat, Heimbuch sprays the ball to all fields and can bunt, slap or hit away. She has been busy on the camp circuit, visiting Wisconsin, Northwestern, Belmont, Purdue and DePaul. Heimbuch also carries an astonishing 5.56 GPA.     May burst onto the scene by batting .527 with a 1.334 OPS in 29 games as a freshman with 18 doubles, 30 runs scored and 28 RBI to help her team win regionals. She caught fire with hits in 11 consecutive at-bats across three games in late April, which was part of a stretch of six straight multi-hit games. May earned All-Northern Lake County Conference and Third-Team All-State honors for Class 3A and was her team's Newcomer of the Year, while leading Wauconda in hitting. At the club level, May was selected to the all-tournament team at the Team 1 STL Fall Exposure in October.     Rosner displayed a keen eye at the plate for a player her age, walking 11 times and striking out just twice in 27 games during her freshman season. She hit .419 with a 1.129 OPS, smacking seven doubles and three triples. Primarily a catcher, Rosner can play any position except pitcher and has plenty of power to the pull side. Rosner has attended camps at Notre Dame, Kentucky, DePaul and UIC, and is sometimes battery mates with her twin sister, Sophie, who was 10-3 with a 2.15 ERA and 92 strikeouts in 71 2/3 innings pitched for Benet Academy last spring.     Helm is coming off a freshman year in which she hit .500 with a 1.484 OPS, 16 doubles, five home runs and 31 RBI in 29 games. She also pitched 106 innings and was 11-6 with a 3.50 ERA, striking out 134 batters and walking 41. Helm hit safely in 16 straight games from late March to early May, with five three-hit games during that span. Her best pitching performance of the season was a seven-inning complete-game two-hit shutout with three walks and 11 strikeouts against Villa Grove. Helm was named conference Player of the Year and Co-Pitcher of the Year, and has attended camps at Illinois, Indiana, Purdue and Auburn, among other schools.

Illinois had a large crop of high school freshmen make huge impacts for their schools last spring, and their stocks are only going to keep rising heading into their sophomore seasons before recruiting begins in earnest next fall. From Chicago and its suburbs to central and southern Illinois, the Land of Lincoln boasts many top prospects in the class of 2027 on whom college coaches are not going to want to miss out.