Allison Benning from Lake Elmo, Minnesota, is one of our outstanding student-athlete bloggers who regularly contribute as part of our Inside Pitch series but this may be a first for us: one of our contributors actually has drafted a well-done Recruiting Spotlight on another player!
Allison, who signed with the University of Oregon in November, is a tall and dominating pitcher who was ranked as a Top 15 overall selection in the 2021 Extra Elite 100 and was one of four in the Top 30 for the Ducks.
A power arm from the Midwest leads off our ‘21 signing class 💪.@allisonbenning_ joins the flock as the No. 1️⃣3️⃣ recruit nationally and the Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/RqcMb6yfgp
— Oregon Softball (@OregonSB) November 11, 2020
She also was named as the 2020 Minnesota Gatorade Softball Player of the Year and made the Extra Inning Softball 2020 All-Summer Team.
We’ve known about Allison’s on-field talents for a while now and did a recruiting spotlight on her titled: Oregon-Bound Pitcher Allison Benning is “Looking for Redemption” last December.
A talented writer as well as standout softball player, the Midwest senior plans on majoring in Journalism at Oregon.
Be sure to check out her previous Inside Pitch articles including Softball in the Midwest is On the Rise! and Allison Benning Recaps This Weekend’s Bolts 5-Star Showcase.
Today, Allison shines the spotlight on a catcher within her organization and tells why she has been so impressed by this talented and dedicated backstop…
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There are many hardworking softball players from all over the nation, but one of the most dedicated and hardworking softball players in the game has been flying under the radar for a long time now.
College coaches need to take a strong look at 2022 Lily Mader, an uncommitted catcher from Las Vegas, Nevada who plays for Shannon Purvis’s Top Gun 16U National team.
The best thing I can say about Lily is that it is easy to tell she loves softball: just a simple scroll through her Twitter page (@lily_mader) and her SportsRecruits profile shows that to be true.
I have only known Lily for a short period of time, roughly five months, but I think I speak for everyone within Top Gun Fastpitch when I say that our organization is lucky not only to have a player of her caliber, but someone who is as dedicated, hardworking, and genuine as she is!
Lily has impressive measurables, which include a strong pop time of 1.72 and a 73 mph exit velocity. In games, she is a gritty player who makes a great impact on both sides of the ball. As a catcher, she is a tremendous, smooth and quiet receiver who gets pitchers strikes.
Take it from me: when I throw a strike to her, it stays a strike!
*** Keeping reading to learn more about Lily including an amazing act of unselfishness to help another catcher…
