Class of 2027 Extra Elite 100 Player Rankings Close on April 5, 2024
Days
Hours
Minutes
Seconds
Nominations are now open!

Recruiting: PA Striker Taylor Posner’s Summer Road Trip That Led Her to the Orange of the ACC

Taylor Posner crashing a bunt during one of her many games on the road this summer for the PA Strikers.

When asked how she spent the summer of 2019, PA Strikers National Team third baseman Taylor Posner holds nothing back when she slyly grins and quickly responds with a tilted head nod:

“On the road!”

And while most would interpret her response to mean she traveled—and traveled she surely did—Taylor’s response actually has a deeper and more symbolic meaning.

At least to her anyway.

And yes, her story is a “sort of” or “semi” version of Robert Frost’s (often overused) The Road Not Taken, but it’s the best way to describe how this young 2021 talent from rural Pennsylvania found her way to a Power Five school in the ACC and became a recent verbal commit to Syracuse University.

Taylor could have been the trigger and could’ve committed before the Early Recruiting Rules took place but decided to wait.

A gritty and fearless corner known for her strong bat, slick base running and charismatic leadership on the field; Taylor drew pre-Early Recruiting Rule interest from local D1 schools.

She could have looked closer at those options.  She could have even played it safe and committed to a school that reached out to her the evening before the rule change went into effect (yes, that happened).

And while flattered, that just wasn’t for Taylor.

Taylor had a different path in mind for her future and she didn’t think twice about it and so, with an admirable pass on what could have possibly been an easy “road” to reach her goals and secure a commitment to play in college, Taylor knew she had to up her game, keep working hard and wait for her time.

She knew that she had to wait for the right time… and wait for the right “road.” Fast-forward nearly a year and a half later to the summer of 2019.

Like other very talented but uncommitted 2021s, Taylor believed the much anticipated “Magical Summer of 2019” to be her moment of truth.  After all, she knew it was the last summer before September of her junior year and she was determined to make sure college coaches – from all over – knew her name.

Taylor at third protecting the line.

The Keystone State talent was determined to prove she made the right choice in waiting for this summer.  And she was determined to have that September moment that all uncommitted 2021s hoped to have.

And so, in the third week of June, Taylor celebrated her brother’s graduation from high school with her family, and the next day she packed her bags and hit “the road” for the summer – not to travel, but to find her future.

Travel is always exciting for Taylor and her PA Strikers team; mostly because they just enjoy being around each other.

And it’s a good thing they do, because this past summer’s travel was looooong.

The nation’s best tournaments/showcases went back to back so for Taylor and her teammates from PA, it was a flight from one state to the next with no time to head home in between.

The 2021 athlete’s defense made her a hot commodity this summer.

It was a tough schedule that allowed for little to no downtime, but it was a schedule that mimicked college life so the players all embraced it and knew how important it was to get used to it.

Taylor recalls one particular night in her hotel room just outside of Chicago.

“It was like our 13th day on the road and we were all starting to feel sore and tired,” she remembers. “I was icing my ankle because it was swollen and I remember us all just sitting, talking and laughing about the different plays we made that day.”

“I also remember thinking that we all just play so hard and these games mean so much to us, that I didn’t even know how I hurt my ankle.  That’s when it really hit me of how badly I wanted this and that’s when I knew how much I just love to play”.

For Taylor, who stayed in the hotel that night and never left the room until the next morning, “the road” to her future got bigger because of that moment.  Her mindset was strong and she wasn’t about to let anything stop her or get in the way of her dreams.

As time went on, it became apparent that one school stood out above the rest…

Taylor listened to her body and got a good night’s rest.  Refreshed and ready to prove herself, she played amazing the next few days in Glen Ellyn (Chicago) at the DeMarini Invitational where college coaches from all over stood behind the backstop to watch the games.

“Taylor is the kid who gets everyone pumped up,” said her Coach Camille Hayes.  “She’s fun to watch in general, but in Chicago she was just incredible.  Defensively, she made so many fabulous plays it was unreal and, offensively, her bat was just alive.  It’s great to have a lead-off with a hot bat and Taylor’s bat was hot.  Her energy is contagious and that’s what makes her even more valuable”, added her coach.

College coaches at the showcase event included Coach Shannon Doepking and Coach Vanessa Shippy from Syracuse University, who must have seen the same level of energy, performance and talent from Taylor as her travel coach did.

From that point forward it was clear the 2021 infielder had some pretty fabulous coaches from some pretty amazing schools following her.

Taylor finished her successful summer travel ball season at PGF Nationals in Huntington Beach, California where her level of play and energy on the field continued to impress against some of the best pitchers and players in the country.

“Taylor had a fantastic summer,” Coach Hayes explained, “and validation of that came from the number of requests we received for Taylor’s contact information.”

Hayes says she knew that things for Taylor were going to get interesting, but still there was anxiousness around the recruiting process.

“Taylor is a super confident kid, but with coaches unable to really talk to you, even the most confident players can be nervous,” the club coach continued.

Taylor’s first camp and official visit was to Syracuse. She’s pictured her with Orange head coach Shannon Doepking.

The days leading up to September 1st were filled with requests to attend prospect camps so the process became even trickier for the athlete.  With only so much time, it became yet another decision of which “road” to take.

Taylor narrowed down her list of camps to attend in the short time she had and, as the saying “what’s meant to be” goes, the first camp she opted to attend took place at Syracuse’s Skytop Softball Stadium.

The two-day prospect camp gave Taylor a chance to see the campus, get to know the coaches and even talk to the players.

She loved everything about her experience there and she knew this was the feeling she was waiting for… or at least hoping for.

September 1st came and sure enough so did the phone calls, emails and texts.

At a football game with Syracuse assistant coach and former Oklahoma State All-American Vanessa Shippy.

Never one to shy away from a conversation, Taylor enjoyed talking with all the different coaches who reached out to her, but the one phone call she was most excited about came from Coach Doepking.

The two seemed to hit it off and two weeks after September 1 Taylor took the “road” back to Syracuse, this time for an official two-day visit.

It didn’t take long to seal the deal: Taylor knew in her heart that this was the opportunity she was dreaming of, the fit she had always hoped for and the path forward she knew she was destined to take.

With an enthusiastic phone call on Sunday evening, September 15, Posner spoke with Coach Doepking and verbally committed to play her college career at Syracuse University.

The perfect ending of a long, but magical summer of 2019, for the athlete as she saw her wonderful journey reach an exciting destination that will launch her into a gloriously Orange future.

More
articles

Get the Latest Updates

Subscribe To Our Weekly Newsletter

Sign up to receive immediate, daily, or weekly news updates!

Search

GET UPDATES
FOR COACHES

Fill out this form to be on Extra Inning Softball notifications list and be the first to get important updates and news specifically for coaches.

Transfer Tracker Updates

Fill out this form to submit your transfer updates. These changes are subject to approval.

Name(Required)
MM slash DD slash YYYY

Interested in an Extra Elite 100 shirt?

Fill out the form below to verify that you’re part of the Extra Elite!

Name(Required)
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.