RANKINGS
EVENTS
I COMMITTED
COLLEGE
ABOUT
We’ve known Madison Winkler for years and have seen the 2022 Extra Elite 100 outfielder travel the long and winding road that has been her recruiting journey–and that of her junior classmates.
The All-American from Kentucky has blogged for us for over two years and in her first Inside Pitch titled “The Fastest ‘Pickle’ You’ll Ever See ” explained how she got her unique nickname!
Since then, she’s overcome wrist surgery to become one of the most promising prospects in the junior class as a 5-tool player who has played varsity softball for Christian County (Hopkinsville, Kentucky) since she’s been in the 7th grade.
Today she plays for Jim Huecker’s Louisville Lady Slugger and in her latest Inside Pitch explains how—despite the obstacles she’s faced, including the Coronavirus quarantine in 2020—has come out on top…
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Every girl wanting to play softball in college looks forward to the day they commit.
It’s one of the most exciting and important decisions of their lives. However, many times, they overlook the process needed to get to that day. The recruiting process starts at a young age: going to camps, emailing colleges, and getting excited when you see a coach watching in the stands.
When the class of 2022 first started the recruiting process, a player could talk to coaches and commit whenever they wanted to.
However, our freshman year the rules changed. No longer could coaches and players talk about recruiting, now everyone had to wait until their junior year. September 1st became the most exciting day to come for us 2022’s.
Many girls committed before the rule change, however, most decided to wait, myself included. From the date of the rule change, all we could do was go to camps and email coaches.
That was, until the summer of our sophomore year. COVID-19 made its appearance and the recruiting process became much more difficult. The first dead period was put into place right before the summer season.
There would be no in person recruiting.
Thankfully, AthletesGoLive became an option and a lot of college coaches began evaluating and watching us through a little screen. As time went on, the dead period began to extend longer and longer. There was talk of moving the September 1st contact day into January.
Then the NCAA granted college athletes an extra year of eligibility, making roster decisions much more difficult for many colleges to project for the 2022 class. Recruiting became a scary process for the class of 2022.
My recruiting process started before I even knew what recruiting was.
The first camp I’d ever been to was a Murray State softball camp. I was the smallest kid there, wearing my Justice softball clothes. I did not know that was the start to a journey that would change my life.
I ran around trying to soak up all the knowledge I could, smiling and giggling in their indoor softball facility. At this age, I went to camps to learn more about softball.
After I started slapping, I went to the UT Slap and Speed camp two years in a row. When I was there, meeting and learning from all of these college softball players and coaches, I knew that one day, I wanted to be just like them.
I continued to go to softball camps, but the one I went to the most was the University of Kentucky winter camp at their indoor football facility. I went every year, talking to new and old players, talking to the coaches, and working my hardest to get better. It taught me a lot about the game and how to approach coaches.
At this point in my life, I still played for a local travel ball team: The Little Lady Colonels. However, when I was 11, I made the decision to move up to an A level team, The L’il Saints.
My coaches were Casey Dickson, a University of Oklahoma alumni, and Jessica Rohn, a Temple University alumni. This was my first time traveling on a national level. It was eye opening to see all the talent that was around me.
Coach Casey and Coach Jess taught our whole team how to email college coaches, make profile sheets, and present ourselves to college coaches. We would type emails out to the coaches and carbon copy the emails to Coach Casey and Coach Jess.
I was always so nervous when I was sending emails. I had just started my second year of 12U, and honestly had no clue yet where I wanted to go to school. The only thought in my head was, “Make sure it’s right. If you make a mistake then they’ll think you’re dumb and they won’t want you.”
I will never forget the first time I looked up and saw a college coach in the stands. I think that was the first time I realized it was all real.
After a season with the Saints I had to leave the team due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control. I really learned a lot about the recruiting process while I was with them, and that helped jump start me on my way.
I went to The Package Deal camp and met a parent with the Comets organization. He gave my dad the contact information for the late Glenn Bradley and a new path was started.
I was a young 03 playing on the Comets 02 for Glenn Bradley and Lee Snead. I fit in really well there, I loved the way that the team was coached, and for the first time, I was on a team with more than one slapper!
I had to do the same thing with emails that I had to do for the Saints: write it out and carbon copy it to my travel coaches. Around this time was when I started going hard and heavy into camps.
One certain camp I remember was the Mercer University softball camp. I was 12, maybe 13, at a camp full of older girls. At the end of the camp, I took my player profile sheet and with all the confidence I had, gave it to the coach. Once I got in the car, I squealed with excitement because I actually did it and didn’t mess it up.
I just hoped that the coach didn’t realize how nervous I had been!
At the end of the season, I decided I did not want to age up to 16U with the team, so I went to Impact Gold- Sewell which was an ‘03 team. They didn’t push the emails as hard, but I continued to send the emails like I had before and keep in contact with coaches.
I went on two unofficial visits when I was with this team: one to Ole Miss and one to Purdue. Both of these visits were very informative, and I learned a lot about visits and talking to coaches in person about their programs and their schools.
*** Scroll down to learn how the 2022 Extra Elite 100 honoree and High School All-American ended up committing to the in-state Cardinals…