Event Preview: Top Gun Elite 20 16u/18u Spring Invite

By: Madison Feldhahn

Thirty-three teams are joining us at the Top Gun Elite 20 16u/18u Spring Invite in Overland Park, KS this weekend. The three-day event will feature teams from Oklahoma, Nebraska, Missouri, Iowa, Colorado and Kansas.

The 16u age group will have four pools and the 18u age group will have two. Pool play starts Friday with games at 6:00 PM and 7:45 PM. Games will resume Saturday at 8:00 AM. The last pool play games will start at 8:15 PM.

Bracket play for the 16u teams will start Sunday at 9:00 AM and the championship game will start at 5:45 PM. The 18u teams will begin bracket play at 10:45 AM. Their championship game kicks off at 5:45 PM.

View Schedule

Gate Fees:

Children (1-12): $5.00

Teens & Adults (13-64): $10.00

Senior (65+): $5.00

Military: $5.00

Take a look at some of the teams joining us below.

16u

KC Phoenix Bock

Coaching Staff: Jen Bock (former JCCC & UMKC player) and Russ Endsor (former player, long time coach, ling time coach, former college coach)

Team Social Media: @KCPhoenix_JB (X)

2024 Summer & Fall Successes: Ended the season 26-17-2 on a season where we tackled our first TG events and invitationals. Were 4-1 in the Team 1 Club Challenge (rained out), USSSA Memorial Day 18A champions, Jayhawk HAS runner-up, tied for 17th in the WFC in KC with unfortunate injuries

Key Players: Shelby Callahan (2027 MI/OF), Enslie Dreyer (2026 P/1B), Mandia Bock (2027 P/MI/UT), Gracie Cox (2026 C), Mattie Marchetti (2027 OF), Makayla McConnel (2026 3B/UT) & Evey Atkinson (2027 OF/MI)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We have all talented multisport athletes so spring will be a season of versatility as we learn to ‘next girl up’ when someone is missing at a position for track, soccer, lacrosse, basketball and even band competitions. We will really focus on softball IQ overall so that we can handle moving positions and still compete. No doubt that we are growing coachable, athletic players who are learning. Spring is all about reps and growth – competing at higher levels and we’ll shift more focus on ‘winning’ this summer.

Louisville Lady Sluggers

Coaching Staff: Head coach Joel Lovelady and assistant coach Joe Shearer

Team Social Media: @ladysluggersred (X), Louisville_sluggers07_lovelady (Instagram) & Louisville Lady Sluggers Lovelady (Facebook)

2024 Summer & Fall Successes: In the spring of 2023 and fall season, the Lady Sluggers Lovelady played a challenging schedule, traveling throughout the Midwest and continued to push their ladies vs great competition.

Key Players: The young group of Sluggers are made up of several familiar faces with returners like 2025 uncommitted Emma Downing and 2026’s Carsen Lovelady, Ora Prichett, Tori Shearer, and Addie Schneider. Fall added talent with the addition of Brailyn Fox, Hunter Anderson-Jones, and Addison Snyder. The ball will be in the hands of Downing, Snyder, Fox, and Anderson-Jones. The defense will see Lovelady, Shearer, Schneider, and Snyder display their versatility moving around the field.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: The Sluggers expect to compete on every pitch, trust the process, and get better every day. The Sluggers will continue to improve as the season continues and Gracie Abercrombie and Kinsey Bebb return following their HS seasons.

Nebraska Gold deMontel

Coaching Staff: Head coach Jimmy deMontel and assistant coach Jake Douglas

Team Social Media: @NEGoldDeMontel (X)

2024 Summer & Fall Successes: 37-14-4, runner up USA Memorial Day 16 Gold division, 5-0 Top Gun Spring Invite Viper division, 6-0 Top Gun Patriot, Top 8 finish in USSSA WFPC KC

Key Players: Amanda Gibilisco (2025), Tarisa Frans (2025), Bridget Whitney (2025), Makenna Watkins (2025), Haley deMontel (2025), Lily Rowe (2025), Miley Rowe (2025), Ashley Duis (2025) & Avery Wolfe (2025)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Expect a strong pitching staff with depth to carry us deep into tournaments this summer

Nebraska National Taylor

Coaching Staff: Brett Taylor & Kirsten Dargy

Team Social Media: @NENational08 (Twitter)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-42-29-3 playing an elite level schedule last season

-1st Place at Top Gun NE National Tourney

-2nd Place at Top Gun Thunder/NE Gold Tourney

-2nd Place at USSSA 16) Swing into Spring

-3rd Place at Top Gun Swing into Spring Tourney

-4th Place at USSSA SEC National Championship

-7 Top 4 finishes out of 10 tournaments (not including rain shortened/canceled tournaments)

-14U PGF Nationals at large bid (Platinum Division)

Key Players:

-Maizey Carpenter

-Toria Rother

-Lauren Schneider

-Elli Ridgley

-Alexa Taylor

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are an improved team over last year. We have a great group of girls and parents. Our goal as coaches is to continue to develop our players to help them reach their potential.

Nebraska Quakes Schueth

Coaching Staff: Head coach JJ Schueth and assistant coaches Jamie Anderson, Carolyn Anderson & Kim Leggott

Team Social Media: @QuakesSchueth (X)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Great season playing super competitive schedule, won a couple tournaments and finalists

Key Players: Our pitching staff in the circle – Abby Leggott, Anna Taylor, and Sammie Brodersen. These girls are great competitors and when they are on their game, it makes us a better team. At the play, we are looking for our lefty’s to really get us rolling – Kaylee Taylor, Hannah Heuton and Reese Kuiken. When these girls get on base, it really fires up the team!!

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Play as a team, have success at the plate and play to the highest level. When these girls are having fun and working together, they are hard to beat. We want these girls to play their absolute best, win or lose. Be able to learn from their successes or struggles and use that as fuel to help them and their team get better.

Nebraska Thunder Johnson

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Bruce Johnson & Assistant Coaches Alana Crollard & Antonio Torrez
Team Social Media: @nethunder22 (X) & @nebraskathundergoldjohnson (IG)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-Top Gun NE Memorial Day Classic Champions in Omaha

-USSSA Big Opener Runner-ups in Minnesota

-USSSA Angels for Autism for Runner-up (HS Division) in Omaha

-USSSA Easter Egg Strikeout Champions (HS Division) in Omaha

-USSSA Season Opener GG 3rd place overall finish in Overland Park

-USSSA Stand UP to Cancer 3rd place overall in Kansas City

Key Players:

-Ada Jantzen

-Kendall Johnson

-Kinnley Wehrle

-Peyton Johnson

-Ava Crollard

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We expect to compete for championships at all of our tournaments and start to make a name for ourselves nationally.

Select Fastpitch Reese

Coaching Staff: Krista Reese (Head Coach) & Jason Bailey (Asst. Coach)

Team Social Media: @StLouisSoftball (Twitter) & Select Fastpitch-16U STL (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-Finished in top 16 of Power Pools in Scenic City Summer

-Finished 3rd at Savvy Softball Elite Summer Invite

-Finished in top 16 in Alliance Open Nationals

-Finished with a record of 5-2 at Tulsa Elite Summer Invite

Key Players: Sarah Rizello (P) leads the team with 51 strikeouts in 26.2 innings. She has an ERA of 2.1 so far this spring. Elia Cabo and Abby Kriete anchor the outfield.   Cabo has a batting avg of .515 which leads the team while batting leadoff.  Kriete is batting .406 with 11 RBI in the two hole. Kaylee Brock (SS) locks down the left side of the infield. She’s batting .474 this season and her range and exceptional arm strength anchor the infield defense. Baylie Roetemeyer does an exceptional job behind the plate and at 3B.  She’s batting .421 on the season and her defense and strong arm limit the opponent’s run game.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Select Fastpitch, formerly St. Louis Softball Club, looks to build on the success they had in 2023 with a qualifying bid to the Alliance Championships in Indianapolis. We expect to have all of our 2025 graduates signed by the end of the season, and we are excited for what the future holds for our 2026 grabs and expect several commitments in the fall.

Top Gun 2027 National

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Stephanie Kim & Assistant Coaches Matt Griffin & Amanda Schuster

Team Social Media: @topgun_skim (Twitter), @coachstephkim (TikTok) & Top Gun 2027 NTL (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Last season, as a 13U team, our proudest finish was placing 9th at the IDT. We were champs of Top Gun Discovery, runner up at the Alliance Super Cup this fall in Clear Water, and finished Top 3 in a 16u Perfect Game Showcase and Savvy Summer Shootout. Our team hit 50+ homeruns in spring/summer of 2023 and ranked #45 in US Club Rankings. Four of our players earned 3rd place in Missouri State Championships as freshman. Three of our freshmen earned All-State honors and five earned Academic All-State. In March, we kicked off the season with a strong showing in the Top Gun Indoor Invite 16/18 going 5-0. We outscored opponents 41-5 with a team .894 ERA and .390 AVG.

Key Players: We have multiple players already receiving Power 5 interest. Some of our top producers include: Bryli Seifert (2027, MIF/OF) – Hit 19 2B, 2 3B and 10 HR. She is one of our top offensive producers and is Top 3 in most categories on our team. 2027 Bailey Barnett (2027, SS/3B/C) – She led our team this summer in nearly every offensive category. Molly Munson (2027, LHP/1B) – 5’9 strong pitcher with intense presence on the mount. Top 100 in 2027 Extra Innings. Addison Ellis (2028, LHP) – In our last tourney this fall (Clearwater Alliance Super Cup), she pitched 15 IP and 25 K with a .457 ERA and only gave up 3 hits. Zariya Mabion (2027, OF/UTL) – Z is one of the most athletic players in the 2027 class. She is ranked Top 25 in the 2027 Extra Innings. Back from an ACL injury.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: It’s about exposure and opportunities for these young women. Our expectation is to play and COMPETE against the best competition in the country, As a second year 14u team, we will be playing up in 16u until June. Once June hits…it’s on. Our summer recruiting schedule includes: Hotshots Summer Exposure in TX, Top Gun Invitational-Maverick in KC, and then we head to Colorado for the Patriot Games, Super Cup, and IDT. We come back to KC to play in the Top Gun Elite Championships to prepare for PGF Nationals to finish out our season.

18u

Nebraska Gold Jarzobski

Coaching Staff: Edward Jarzobski (9th year coaching competitive softball), Maurice Anderson (10th year coaching competitive softball, NE Gold coach Team Anderson and Softball President MUS) & Dave Hobza (7th year coaching competitive softball)

Team Social Media: @negold18u (Twitter)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-6 seniors went on to play in college (1 D1, 1 D2, 1 D3, 3 NAIA)

-All 12 of our current seniors are committed to play in college (2 D1, 4 D2, 6 NAIA)

Key Players:

-Mackenzie Groniga

-Emi Waldow

-Katelyn Jarzobski

-Addy Hobza

-Kriestyn Linn

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Goal is to finish top 4 Top Gun Viper and top 10 in Top Gun Championship

Nebraska Gold National Perkins

Coaching Staff: Chad Perkins, McKenna Nixon, Jesse Waller and Bill Heard

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Top Club Spring Champions, Top 8 finish Colorado, WFC winner

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Will play a strong schedule. Hope to be competitive.

Nebraska Thunder Fox

Coaching Staff: William Fox (returning to the head coach position after 3 years as an assistant) & Brent Wonder (10 years of head coaching experience in both baseball and softball)

Team Social Media: NeThunder Fastpitch (Facebook), @nebraskathunder18u2024 (IG), @Nethunderf (Twitter) & 18U Thunder Gold (Fox) (SportsRecruits)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Our 4 graduating seniors committed and continued their athletic careers at the collegiate level (Barton College, Chadron State, Northwestern College and Highland CC), Fall resulted in 2 additional commitments (Concordia & Central CC)

Key Players: Ayla Mathney – committed to Calumet College of St. Joseph, a leader in the circle, Joslyn Sargent – junior at Ashland High School, new to our roster, she looks to make a statement at SS and in our lineup, Kaylee Tanuis – senior from Papillion-LaVista Class A State Champions, she is a vital and diverse player on our roster, Macey West – multi-sport athlete expanding her abilities and strengths as a UTL

Expectations for the 2024 Spring Season: With 3 returning players, we are looking for a season of growth and development. Develop a new team culture, drive athletes to become competitors, teammates, and family, achieve player goals on and off field, and continue the tradition of collegiate commitments

Top Gun National Turner

Coaching Staff:  Bob Turner, Joe Sciara, Brent Wilhelm, David Rocha, Allen Curtis

Team Social Media Handles: @TGA_Turner / @TGASciara

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:  18 National finished 3rd in US Club Rankings after taking 3rd at Triple Crown Nationals, 5th in CO Sparkler Power Pool, and 5th at USA Gold Nationals

Key Players:  Sydney Boulaphinh (Stanford), Taylor Troutman (Miss State), Abby Wilhelm (Missouri), Kennedy Diggs (Kansas), Lorin Boutte (Miami of Ohio), Carrie Green (So Miss), Anna McGowan (NC State), Kam Munson (NC State), Gretta Grassel (Miss St), Macie Hunolt (North Florida), Grace Shaw (North Florida), Nat Kenyatta (Michigan State), Jordyn Thurman (Mizzou), Sophia Camacho (Florida Atlantic), Gianni Torres (2026), Sage Rodmyre (2025 Undecided), Hayden Kurtz (Southern Illinois), Sierra Persinger (UNC Wilmington)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Expectations are another tremendously competitive season with an elite schedule, helping this outstanding group of seniors prepare for their freshman seasons in the fall.  Looking forward to pursuing a national championship this summer with a special group of players and families.

 

Event Recap: Nebraska Thunder Fundraiser powered by TGE

By: Madison Feldhahn

In the 14u age group, the teams were split into three pools. Iowa Aries Elite Ohorilko, Millard Fury Gold Vance, and NE Storm Prime Bachman 13u all went undefeated through pool play. Millard Fury Gold Vance led the pool standings in runs scored with 31. Iowa Aries Elite Ohorilko scored 27 runs and did not allow any against them.

The 16u age group had four pools. There were dominant performances from several teams. Nebraska National Taylor 16u, Nebraska Thunder Johnson, Nebraska Thunder Dillon, and Nebraska Cougars Behounek led their respective pools, going undefeated.

The 18u age group was split into two pools. Nebraska National Hoelscher and Nebraska Quakes Jonas finished the pool play undefeated. Nebraska Quakes Jonas scored 31 runs while allowing only 9 runs.

Bracket play took place on Sunday.

The 14u champion was Iowa Aries Elite Ohorilko. The team had a dominant performance from start to finish. The team had just four runs scored against them in a game against Millard Fury Gold Ruelas in the semifinal. Outside that game, the closest score was 6-0 against Nebraska Thunder Bennett.

Iowa Aries Elite Ohorilko faced Nebraska Storm Prime Bachman 13u in the final. Iowa Aries won 19-0. In total, the team scored 32 runs during bracket play alone. The team scored 59 runs across the entire weekend.

Primetime Eadus walked away the 16u champion. After finishing 2-1 in bracket play, Primetime Eadus was a two-seed. The team put up a good fight during bracket play, scoring 21 runs and allowing just 7 runs. Their largest margin of win was 8-1 against Nebraska Cougars Behounek. Primetime Eadus beat Nebraska National Taylor 16u 4-3 to win the bracket.

The winner of the 18u bracket was Nebraska National 18u Bahl. The team finished second in the Pool A after going 2-0-1. In bracket play, the team’s closest game was 3-2 against Prodigy Fastpitch Roth. Their largest margin of win was 10-4 against Nebraska Quakes Bowen. In the final, Nebraska National 18u Bahl defeated Nebraska Echoes Madsen 5-2. Sydney Mennenga scored a home run in the finals for Nebraska National 18u Bahl.

Thank you to the teams who participated in the Nebraska Thunder Fundraiser Powered by Top Gun Events this past weekend!

Event Preview: Nebraska Thunder Fundraiser

By: Madison Feldhahn

The Nebraska Thunder Fundraiser powered by Top Gun Events runs from April 5 to April 7 in Papillion, NE. Top Gun Events is excited to host the event in conjunction with the Nebraska Thunder/Gold Organization. This event will feature thirty-nine teams from Nebraska, Iowa and Canada.

Each team will play three pool play games before starting bracket play. This is a single elimination bracket and the champion of each division will receive a berth to the 2024 Top Gun Invitational. Pool play for both the 16U and 18U division will kick off at 6:00 PM on Friday. 14U will begin at 7:35 PM Friday. Games will run from 9:00 AM to 8:05 PM on Saturday and from 9:00 AM to 6:30 PM Sunday.

Gate Fees:

Children (1-12): $5.00

Teens & Adults (13-64): $10.00

Senior (65+): $5.00

Military: Free

Take a closer look at some of the teams joining us below.

14U

Iowa Aries Elite Ohorilko

Coaching Staff: Brian Ohorilko & Kari Price

Team Social Media Handles: @Iowa_Aries (X), Iowa Aries Fastpitch (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Fall Champions of: Team 1/Alliance FP STL Xposure Fall Invite in St. Louis, MO, PGF Diamond Legacy Shootout & Showcase in Broken Arrow, OK, PG Iowa City Scouting Showcase #1 in Iowa City, IA, PG Elite 16 Illinois Scouting Showcase in Peoria, IL, PG Elite 16 Minnesota Scouting Showcase in Minneapolis, MN, USSSA CIS Spooktacular in Des Moines, IA

Key Players: Berkley Weiland (SS/OF) – RH/Throw, LH/Hit. Slapper. Amazing speed. Great defensive player. Kaylan Pray (SS/UTL) – RH/Throw & Hit. Excellent hitter & defensive player. Ivy Ohorilko (C/UTL) – RH/Throw & Hit. Power hitter, excellent defensive player. Karter Price (P/UTL) – RH/Throw & Hit. Excellent pitcher. Leela Appeldorn (MIF/UTL) – RH/Throw, LH/Hit. Excellent hitter and defensive player.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Iowa Aries encourages our high school players to participate in high school softball this time of year. The program will have a very light tournament and travel schedule this spring and summer supplement our player’s high school workouts. We cannot wait to get back in full swing fall of 2024.

Millard Fury Gold Vance

Coaching Staff: Mark Vance, Ryan Boozikee & Charles Starkovich

Team Social Media Handles: @FuryGoldVance (X)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Finished the year 56-25, NE Class B USSSA State Champions, USSSA Midwest Nationals Open Silver Bracket National Champions, Finished the year off winning the 14U Boo Bash in Lincoln, NE

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: For 2023-24, we have changed organizations to provide better exposure for our players and enable us as coaches to assist those that want to play college softball. We are playing a very tough schedule at A and Open level and, with the move to the new organization, we are getting opportunities to play against better competition to help our team grow. We have very big goals for the year and it might not show at the end of the year in our record. But we, as coaches, wanted to challenge our girls and we have seen them step up already through winter workouts. We have never had a more cohesive team and such a great group of girls from attitude to effort across the board.

Nebraska Quakes Carson ‘09

Coaching Staff: Jen Carson (Head Coach) & Assistants Lynn Griffis, Susan Stagid & Sarah Gutschow

Team Social Media Handles: @NEQuakesCarson

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Tied for 9th in the USSSA Midwest Championship, 1st Place at Under Armour Championship in KC, 1st Place in York in 16U Division, 3rd Place in USSSA Super 48 Invitational in KC, 1st Place in Blair Invite, 2nd Place at Heroes Classic in Hastings, 7th Place at USSSA 16U State

Key Players: Paityn Spencer, Alex Finley, Lexi Skradski, Hope Stadig, Liv Wenz

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are looking to challenge ourselves each time we step foot on the field. We want to compete with the best teams locally and out of state. Win or lose, we seek to get better each game and practice to develop as a team, as individual players, and as humans.

Nebraska Quakes Chonis

Coaching Staff: Don Chonis (Head Coach) & Assistants Karlie Chonis, Casie Volkmar & Bryan Nielsen

Team Social Media Handles: @NEQuakesGold13U (X), nequakesgold_13u (Instagram) & Nebraska Quakes Gold Chonis (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: New Team

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: To compete at the Class A/Gold level & get ready for the jump to high school

Nebraska Thunder Bennett

Coaching Staff: Jenny Bennett, Kurt Pohlmann & Jake Bergren

Team Social Media Handles: @NThunderBennett (X)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: 1st Place in the Jayhawk Slugfest, 2nd Place in the Kansas City Memorial Tournament, 2nd in the Nebraska State Tournament

Key Players: Kaylee Huffman, Addalynne Bergren, Allie Bergman, Aurelia Gramd

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are looking for our girls to compete with confidence, have fun and continue to love the game.

16U

Nebraska National Taylor 16u

Coaching Staff: Brett Taylor & Kirsten Dargy

Team Social Media: @NENational08 (Twitter)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: 42-29-3 playing an elite level schedule last season, 1st Place at Top Gun NE National Tourney, 2nd Place at Top Gun Thunder/NE Gold Tourney, 2nd Place at USSSA 16) Swing into Spring, 3rd Place at Top Gun Swing into Spring Tourney, 4th Place at USSSA SEC National Championship, 7 Top 4 finishes out of 10 tournaments (not including rain shortened/cancelled tournaments), 14U PGF Nationals at large bid (Platinum Division)

Key Players:Maizey Carpenter, Toria Rother, Lauren Schneider, Elli Ridgley, Alexa Taylor

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are an improved team over last year. We have a great group of girls and parents. Our goal as coaches is to continue to develop our players to help them reach their potential.

Nebraska Quakes Gilpin

Coaching Staff: Don Gilpin (Head Coach), Steve Asher (Assistant Coach) & Rob Novak (Assistant Coach)
Team Social Media: @NEQuakesGilpin (X) & NE Quakes Gold 15U Gilpin (SportsRecruits)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: 51-23-5 record in 2023, in 14A/HS class, 1st place USSSA Battle for the Bling 14A NIT, 2nd place Bennington Spring Bash HS, 2nd place Quakes Classic, 1st place KS/MO 14A State Tournament, 3rd place Ringneck 14A

Key Players: A strong core group of players that has grown together for several years. Each player on this roster has a high set of expectations and will contribute greatly to our successes in 2024.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: As a young 15U team returning our entire roster from 2023, we will be looking to continue challenging our players and building upon previous successes, as we prepare them to compete at the next level. A serious pitching staff, backed up by solid defense, and a dangerous batting lineup sets the bar high for this young group of outstanding athletes!

Nebraska WAVE Bergantzel

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Blaine Bergantzel, Assistant Angela Hagaman, Assistant Rich Chubbuck and Student Assistant Madison Tilson
Team Social Media: @NEWavesFastpitch (X) & Nebraska Wave – Bergantzel (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: NE WAVE 15U is a newer team for 2024.

Key Players: Team consists of players from Hiawatha, KS., Gretna, Lincoln and surrounding communities

Shaylee Heidtbrink (2026 P/UTL), Allarie Wilson (2027 P), Molly Bergantzel (2027 P/UTL), Taylor Price (2027 2B/P), Samantha Hagaman (2027 SS/3B), Madison Chubbuck (2026 C/SS), Chloe Torticill (2026 SS/IF), Bella Determan (2027 MI/OF), Morgan Tilson (2026 1B), Kylee Thompsom (2026 OF), Sahara Meyers (2026 OF/C), Emmy Sheldon (2026 OF)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Off the field, player expectations are focused around mentally preparing for game management, game knowledge, and understanding at a fast pace has been a focus this off season.

Primetime Chavez

Coaching Staff: Juan Chavez, Brooke Campbell & Lisa Timmins
Team Social Media: @Primetime07_ (X)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Primetime 07 was able to overcome several challenges last summer, making them a better team. One of our catchers had a torn labrum, and we had a pitcher that had an arm injury. Despite having significant injuries to a couple players we had a successful season. In the fall, we had 3 of our players lead Ashland HS to its first state softball title in school history in Class C. The 3 players were Reese Fisher, Ellie Milburn, and Sofia Dill. A group of sophomore that led the way and became the team leaders while motivating and supporting the rest of their team to a championship. We had another player, Jordyn Campbell, win a state championship in girls wrestling at 125 as a sophomore. Plus, we have several other players that contributed to their high school softball season this past fall as sophomores and juniors.

Key Players: Chloe Rauner, Reese Fisher, Jordyn Campbell, Ellie Milburn, Sloane Gregory, Tessa Carrell, Morgan Timmins, Teagan Noelle

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Expectations for the team are to be a better player and person after the season. To make more memories with each other and to always battle to the very end. This is a resilient group of girls who love to compete at everything they do.

Primetime Eadus

Coaching Staff: Mike Leapley
Team Social Media: @primetimenesb

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Winter Warmup Champions, Eggstravaganza Champions, 2nd Place USA Memorial Day Weekend KC, Pink Out Champions

Key Players: Hannah Miller, Hadley Hansen, Jaycee Woodard, Mace Cruse, Kennedy Drummond

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Play at a high level and compete

Primetime Weis

Coaching Staff: Kaitlyn Weis, Ron Weis, Chris Barton & Dan Gudenrath
Team Social Media: @primetimeweis (X)

Key Players: Audrey Kohl – Pitcher from Missouri Valley, Emerson Anderson – Catcher/3B/Utility from Missouri Valley, Amanda Weis – SS/Catcher/Utility from Gretna East HS, Rylan Anderson – OF from Gretna East HS, Kenadie Barton – OF from Gretna HS, Cindy Xiong – Pitcher/Utility from Millard South HS

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Compete with the best and grow individually and as a team

18U

Nebraska Echoes Madsen

Coaching Staff: Brad Madsen, Brandon Brink, Abigail Brink & Jeff Rasmussen

Team Social Media: @bradm198 (Twitter) & NE Echoes 18U National Madsen (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: 52-19-4 in summer, Runner-up at Memorial Day USA 16U, 6-0 in fall, CIS Winner

Key Players: Teya Speltz, Charlie Pryor, Teygan Rasmussen (new addition), Brianna Kutschkau (new addition)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: As a 1st year 18U team, the plan is to keep competing at a high level. Be that team others don’t want to see on their schedule.

Nebraska National 18u Bahl

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Hayden Bahl & Assistant Coaches Emma Walbert & Jordy Bahl
Team Social Media: @NENational18u (X)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Champions of the 18u Quakes Classic, Runner-up in the 16u Nebraska Thunder Fundraiser tournament, 16u Perfect Game OKC Challenge, Team record of 33-16-5

Key Players: We are very excited about what each player on our team is capable of, as we have seen amazing growth from so many of them!

Addison Burdorf (P/2B), Macie Wyman (3B/1B), Maycie Grant (SS/2B), Alivia Courter (C/2B), Lauren Frihauf (CF/LF)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are very excited about what we have seen from the team this offseason, and we love how this team has grown on the physical and mental sides of the game. The expectation for our team is that each time we step on the field, we play hard, smart, and together. While we will be one of the youngest teams in each tournament we play, we know that this team will be ready to show up and compete at a high level.

Nebraska Thunder Fox

Coaching Staff: William Fox (returning to the head coach position after 3 years as an assistant) & Brent Wonder (10 years of head coaching experience in both baseball and softball)

Team Social Media: NeThunder Fastpitch (Facebook), @nebraskathunder18u2024 (IG), @Nethunderf (Twitter) & 18U Thunder Gold (Fox) (SportsRecruits)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Our 4 graduating seniors committed and continued their athletic careers at the collegiate level (Barton College, Chadron State, Northwestern College and Highland CC), Fall resulted in 2 additional commitments (Concordia & Central CC)

Key Players: Ayla Mathney – committed to Calumet College of St. Joseph, a leader in the circle, Joslyn Sargent – junior at Ashland High School, new to our roster, she looks to make a statement at SS and in our lineup, Kaylee Tanuis – senior from Papillion-LaVista Class A State Champions, she is a vital and diverse player on our roster, Macey West – multi-sport athlete expanding her abilities and strengths as a UTL

Expectations for the 2024 Spring Season: With 3 returning players, we are looking for a season of growth and development. Develop a new team culture, drive athletes to become competitors, teammates, and family, achieve player goals on and off field, and continue the tradition of collegiate commitments

Nebraska Thunder Gold Johnson

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Bruce Johnson & Assistant Coaches Alana Crollard & Antonio Torrez
Team Social Media: @nethunder22 (X) & @nebraskathundergoldjohnson (IG)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Top Gun NE Memorial Day Classic Champions in Omaha, USSSA Big Opener Runner-ups in Minnesota, USSSA Angels for Autism for Runner-up (HS Division) in Omaha, USSSA Easter Egg Strikeout Champions (HS Division) in Omaha, USSSA Season Opener GG 3rd place overall finish in Overland Park, USSSA Stand UP to Cancer 3rd place overall in Kansas City

Key Players: Ada Jantzen, Kendall Johnson, Kinnley Wehrle, Peyton Johnson, Ava Crollard

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We expect to compete for championships at all of our tournaments and start to make a name for ourselves nationally

Nebraska Venom 18u National

Coaching Staff: John Parsons, Samantha Hislop & Suzy Shanks
Team Social Media: @18uVenom (X) & Nebraska Venom National 18u (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: We were 74-20 last year and 10-1 through the fall

Key Players: Ava Kuntz (1B), Kylie Baumgard (C), Chloe Jewitt (P), Kynzee McFadden (SS), Lillian Harris (CF)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Last season, we were able to show top 2 in 13 tournaments. We are looking to duplicate those results in ’24! We were also fortunate enough to get this season’s seniors all signed and committed to continue playing. We look to get the current juniors on the team offers to continue playing the game they love at the highest level, while furthering their education.

Nebraska WAVE Shepherd

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Luke Shepherd & Assistant Coaches Cory Claussen & Peyton Glatter
Team Social Media: @NEWaveFastpitch (X) & thewaveathletics.com

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: USSSA State Runner Up Class A 18u, Went 3-0-1 in KCKCC Tournament

Key Players: Hannah Allen (Midland University commit), Alexis Shepherd (Midland University commit), Alexis Adams (Doane College commit), Kloey Johnson (Southeast CC commit), Jill Johnson (1B/OF, Uncommitted), Brooklyn Stutzman (P/1B, Uncommitted), Jerzey Wiechman (P, Uncommitted)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Will be traveling throughout the Mid-West playing in several Top Gun Showcases/Invites

Top Gun Indoor Invite Event Recap

By: Madison Feldhahn

The Top Gun Indoor Invite took place this past weekend at the Griffon Indoor Sports Complex in St. Joseph, MO. The 16U and 18U age groups were combined into a high school division with two pools.

Select Fastpitch Reese came out on top of a very competitive Pool A, finishing the weekend 4-1. After losing to Top Gun ’08 2-0 in their first game, Select Fastpitch won the rest of their games. The team tallied 27 runs, including one home run from Lauren Bailey and two from Baylie Roetemeyer. Their most dominate performance came against Nebraska Thunder Fox in an 11-1 rout.

In Pool B, Top Gun National 2027 was dominant, going undefeated through five games. Their victories included a 7-0 win against MN Waves Beech, 16-0 win against Building Champions Peppers Wallace 16u, and a 12-1 win against Nebraska Gold Waller. The team allowed just 5 runs against them, while scoring 41 runs.

Several other teams also showcased impressive performances this weekend:

Louisville Lady Sluggers VanBoxmeer concluded the weekend with a 4-1 record. They battled in close games against Nebraska National Taylor, Nebraska Quakes Macken, and Top Gun National 2027. Their largest margin of victory was 10-3 against Building Champions Peppers Wallace 16u. The Lady Sluggers scored 19 runs and conceded just 8.

Top Gun ’08, NE Echoes Madsen, Originals Moss, and Nebraska National Taylor all finished the weekend with a 3-2 record.

Top Gun ’08 commenced their weekend with a 2-0 win against Select Fastpitch Reese and wrapped up with two more wins against Nebraska Thunder Fox and Originals Moss.

Brad Madsen’s NE Echoes team had three decisive wins. The team started the weekend with a 9-2 win against Primetime Koozer and wrapped up Saturday with a 3-0 win against Nebraska Gold Jarzobski. Their last game was an 8-1 win against Top Gun ’08. The Echoes scored 25 runs, including a home run from Teygan Rasmussen.

Originals Moss secured impressive wins against Nebraska Thunder Fox and Nebraska Gold Jarzobski. The team scored 25 runs across the two days of play and finished with a +14 run differential.

Nebraska National Taylor conceded only 5 runs this past weekend. The team scored 18 runs, one of which was a home run hit by Macy Schneider. Brett Taylor’s team started their weekend with a 2-1 win against MN Waves Beech on Saturday. Their other wins came in a 12-0 rout against Nebraska Quakes Macken and a 3-1 finish against Nebraska Gold Waller.

Thank you and good luck to the teams who participated in the Top Gun Indoor Invite this past weekend!

Top Gun Indoor Invite Event Preview

By: Madison Feldhahn

The Top Gun Indoor Invite returns to St. Joseph, MO on March 9th and 10th to kick off the Top Gun Events spring season. This highly anticipated event brings together sixteen elite softball teams from Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Minnesota.

The round-robin style tournament will take place at the Griffon Indoor Sports Complex. The 16u and 18u divisions have been combined into a high school division. All teams will play five games. Top Gun ’08 vs. Select Fastpitch Reese and NE Echoes Madsen vs. Primetime Koozer will start the tournament at 8:00 AM Saturday. Games will start every eighty minutes with the last games starting at 9:20 PM on Saturday. The tournament will restart at 8:00 AM Sunday and run until 6:40 PM.

Gate Fees:

Children (1-12): $5.00

Teens & Adults (13-64): $10.00

Senior (65+): $5.00

Military: $5.00

As coaches and players finalize their preparations, let’s take a closer look at some of the teams joining us.

Louisville Lady Sluggers VanBoxmeer

Coaching Staff: Ashley VanBoxmeer & Andy Paalhar

Team Social Media: @louisvilleladysluggers16u_VB (IG) & @Sluggers07VB (Twitter)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-Ranked 14th in the country

-3rd place at Triple Crown Nationals

-17th place at Colorado Sparkler PP

-Alliance Nationals Top 25

-Top Club Invite Runner Up

-Team 1 Spring Invite Champion

Key Players: This isn’t our full team due to spring high school season, but we are excited to break up the practice routine and get some games in.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Continue improving our softball IQ and skill development in preparation for a challenging summer schedule against the best in the country!

MN Waves Beech

Coaching Staff: Daniel Beech (Owner/Director/Trainer/15U National Head Coach)

Team Social Media: MN Waves 15U National (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-Champions of the Lexi Kretsch Invitational

-Champions of the USSSA Great Lakes National Championship

Key Players:

-Harper Chappuis (CF)

-Auden Anderson (P)

-Sydney Klar (P)

-Kaitlyn Trask (3B)

-Evelyn DeRock (LF)

-Molly Walker (P/2B/RF)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are maturing as a club and expect to compete with second-year 16s at a regional level. We have the most challenging schedule we’ve ever had – Top Gun Invitational (MO), S&C Showcase (MN), Top Gun Patriot (IL), Firecracker Showcase (IN), 15U Nationals (IA), and World Fastpitch Championships (SD). Our Waves program was invited to the 18U I.D.T. this summer in Colorado so we will go in 2025.

NE Echoes Madsen

Coaching Staff: Brad Madsen, Brandon Brink, Abigail Brink & Jeff Rasmussen

Team Social Media: @bradm198 (Twitter) & NE Echoes 18U National Madsen (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-52-19-4 in summer

-Runner-up at Memorial Day USA 16U

-6-0 in fall

-CIS Winner

Key Players:

-Teya Speltz

-Charlie Pryor

-Teygan Rasmussen (new addition)

-Brianna Kutschkau (new addition)

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: As a 1st year 18U team, the plan is to keep competing at a high level. Be that team others don’t want to see on their schedule.

Nebraska Gold Jarzboski

Coaching Staff: Edward Jarzobski (9th year coaching competitive softball), Maurice Anderson (10th year coaching competitive softball, NE Gold coach Team Anderson and Softball President MUS) & Dave Hobza (7th year coaching competitive softball)

Team Social Media: @negold18u (Twitter)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-6 seniors went on to play in college (1 D1, 1 D2, 1 D3, 3 NAIA)

-All 12 of our current seniors are committed to play in college (2 D1, 4 D2, 6 NAIA)

Key Players:

-Mackenzie Groniga

-Emi Waldow

-Katelyn Jarzobski

-Addy Hobza

-Kriestyn Linn

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Goal is to finish top 4 Top Gun Viper and top 10 in Top Gun Championship

Nebraska Gold Waller

Coaching Staff: Kelli Waller (Head Coach), Steve Hinrichs (Assistant Coach) & Chad Villwok (Assistant Coach)

Team Social Media: @NEGold08_Waller (Twitter) & nebraskagold08s_Waller (Instagram)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-3rd place finish PG National Qualifier KC

-2nd place HS Division Spring Fling

-8th place Top Gun Spring Invite

-6th place USA SB Invite

-3rd place Top Gun Swing into Spring

-3rd place Top Gun Thunder/Gold Invite

Key Players: Lots of great athletes who will be key players this season. Covering multiple positions, we will be challenging our players to get comfortable playing uncomfortable roles.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: A young 15U team looking to compete against some of the best teams in the HS divisions. All players coming off very successful fall HS seasons and are ready to get back on the dirt this spring. We will be playing a very challenging schedule of Top Gun Events, USA Invites, and Triple Crown. This team thrives off competition and being the best teammates, and we are looking forward to this translating to game time.

Nebraska National Taylor

Coaching Staff: Brett Taylor & Kirsten Dargy

Team Social Media: @NENational08 (Twitter)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-42-29-3 playing an elite level schedule last season

-1st Place at Top Gun NE National Tourney

-2nd Place at Top Gun Thunder/NE Gold Tourney

-2nd Place at USSSA 16) Swing into Spring

-3rd Place at Top Gun Swing into Spring Tourney

-4th Place at USSSA SEC National Championship

-7 Top 4 finishes out of 10 tournaments (not including rain shortened/cancelled tournaments)

-14U PGF Nationals at large bid (Platinum Division)

Key Players:

-Maizey Carpenter

-Reese Pearson

-Toria Rother

-Lauren Schneider

-Alexa Taylor

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: We are an improved team over last year. Our goal as coaches is to continue to develop our players to help them reach their potential.

Nebraska Thunder Fox

Coaching Staff: William Fox (returning to the head coach position after 3 years as an assistant) & Brent Wonder (10 years of head coaching experience in both baseball and softball)

Team Social Media: NeThunder Fastpitch (Facebook), @nebraskathunder18u2024 (IG), @Nethunderf (Twitter) & 18U Thunder Gold (Fox) (SportsRecruits)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-Our 4 graduating seniors committed and continued their athletic careers at the collegiate level (Barton College, Chadron State, Northwestern College and Highland CC)

-Fall resulted in 2 additional commitments (Concordia & Central CC)

Key Players:

-Ayla Mathney – committed to Calumet College of St. Joseph, a leader in the circle

-Joslyn Sargent – junior at Ashland High School, new to our roster, she looks to make a statement at SS and in our lineup

-Kaylee Tanuis – senior from Papillion-LaVista Class A State Champions, she is a vital and diverse player on our roster

-Macey West – multi-sport athlete expanding her abilities and strengths as a UTL

Expectations for the 2024 Spring Season: With 3 returning players, we are looking for a season of growth and development. Develop a new team culture, drive athletes to become competitors, teammates, and family, achieve player goals on and off field, and continue the tradition of collegiate commitments

Primetime Koozer

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Todd Koozer & Assistant Coaches Kelsey Koozer and Alyssa Grewcock

Team Social Media: @Primetime_Kooz (Twitter) & primetimesoftball06.com

Key Players:

-2024 Kaidence Dumas – Quincy University commit, powerful hitter who will pitch, play 3B and 1B

-2025 Makala Koozer – Uncommitted, great speed, slapper/power slapper, OF

-2024 Avery Gossett – Fort Hays State commit, great athlete, really good power at the plate, OF

-2024 Morgan Stock – College of St. Mary’s commit, very fast, versatile hitter, OF

-2025 Sydney Atkins – Uncommitted, pitcher & has become a good hitter

-2024 Joslyn Policky – Southeastern CC commit, catcher, SS, 3B

Expectations for the 2024 Spring Season: As a team, we have always prided ourselves on developing kids and getting them prepared for the next level by using a team first mentality and competing against high level competition. This team was created with the purpose of having fun, while still being able to accomplish those high goals and expectations.

Select Fastpitch Reese

Coaching Staff: Krista Reese (Head Coach) & Jason Bailey (Asst. Coach)

Team Social Media: @StLouisSoftball (Twitter) & Select Fastpitch-16U STL (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes:

-Finished in top 16 of Power Pools in Scenic City Summer

-Finished 3rd at Savvy Softball Elite Summer Invite

-Finished in top 16 in Alliance Open Nationals

-Finished with a record of 5-2 at Tulsa Elite Summer Invite

Key Players:

-Sarah Rizello (P) led the team in wins with 10, SO with 85, and ERA 2.756.

-Abby Kritete and Elia Cabo anchor the outfield. Kriete led the team in Fielding Percentage at 0.988 and is second on the team in batting avg. with a 357 avg. in the fall and 556 avg. leading into this spring. Cabo is leading the team in avg. leading into the spring with an avg. 0f 750.

-Kaylee Brock (SS) locks down the left side of the infield. She batted 377 last season and her range and exceptional arm strength anchor the infield defense.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: Select Fastpitch, formerly St. Louis Softball Club, looks to build on the success they had in 2023 with a qualifying bid to the Alliance Championships in Indianapolis. We expect to have all of our 2025 graduates signed by the end of the season, and we are excited for what the future holds for our 2026 grabs and expect several commitments in the fall.

Top Gun National 2027

Coaching Staff: Head Coach Stephanie Kim & Assistant Coaches Matt Griffin & Amanda Schuster

Team Social Media: @topgun_skim (Twitter), @coachstephkim (TikTok) & Top Gun 2027 NTL (Facebook)

2023 Summer & Fall Successes: Last season, as a 13U team, our proudest finish was placing 9th at the IDT. We were champs of Top Gun Discovery, runner up at the Alliance Super Cup this fall in Clear Water, and finished Top 3 in a 16u Perfect Game Showcase and Savvy Summer Shootout. Our team hit 50+ homeruns in spring/summer of 2023 and ranked #45 in US Club Rankings. Four of our players earned 3rd place in Missouri State Championships as freshman. Three of our freshmen earned All-State honors and five earned Academic All-State.

Key Players: We have multiple players already receiving Power 5 interest. Some of our top producers include:

-2027 Bryli Seifert (MIF/OF) – Earned starting SS as a freshman and went on to receive 1st Team All-State honors and Academic All-State. She hit .548 AVG, 1.592 OPS with 5 HR, 4 3B, and 9 2B. On our team last summer, she hit 19 2B, 2 3B and 10 HR. She is one of our top offensive producers and is Top 3 in most categories on our team.

-2027 Bailey Barnett (SS/3B/C) – She led our team this summer in nearly every offensive category: homeruns (16), batting average (.469), hits (83 in 75 games), doubles (19), RBI’s (74), and runs (66). She broke her high school’s home run record as a freshman, earned 2nd Team All-State and Academic All-State, and helped her team secure a 3rd place state finish.

-2027 Holly Munson (LHP/1B) – 5’9 strong pitcher with intense presence on the mount. Top 100 in 2027 Extra Innings. She lead her high school team to a 3rd place finish as a freshman, earned 1st Team All-State honors and Academic All-State, and had 96 K with a .968 ERA. She hit 4 HR. Last summer, she had 160 K and hit .500 with a 1.726 OPS.

-2028 Addison Ellis (LHP) – 5’9 long levers, very spinny, and misses a ton of barrels throwing in the low 60s. In our last tourney this fall (Clearwater Alliance Super Cup), she pitched 15 IP and 25 K with a .457 ERA and only gave up 3 hits.

-2027 Zariya Mabion (OF/UTL) – Z is one of the most athletic players in the 2027 class. She is ranked Top 25 in the 2027 Extra Innings. She tore her ACL in June 2023 and had already hit 16 HR, 6 triples, 11 doubles, drove in 44 runs, scored 65 runs, and stole 29 bases. Finished her season early from injury with a .469 AVG and a 1.569 OPS.

Expectations for 2024 Spring Season: It’s about exposure and opportunities for these young women. Our expectation is to play and COMPETE against the best competition in the country, As a second year 14u team, we will be playing up in 16u until June. Once June hits…it’s on. Our summer recruiting schedule includes: Hotshots Summer Exposure in TX, Top Gun Invitational-Maverick in KC, and then we head to Colorado for the Patriot Games, Super Cup, and IDT. We come back to KC to play in the Top Gun Elite Championships to prepare for PGF Nationals to finish out our season.

Heartland College Showcase powered by Top Gun Events

Heartland College Showcase powered by Top Gun Events

By: TGE Staff

Heartland College Showcase is getting a makeover!

We are excited to announce the collaboration between USA Softball of Kansas City and Top Gun Events to bring the experience of hosting a next level elite showcase with the history and governance of USA Softball of KC bringing teams an impactful meaningful experience.  This event will have two divisions.  An open division and a division a team can enter by application or by invitation. The Open division will be running June 7th- 9th with an opportunity for those Junior and Seniors who are uncommitted to play in Spotlight Games, Monday the 10th.  The application-based division will run Saturday, June 8th- Monday, June 10th.     

With the collaboration with our two great organizations, we hope to truly give the teams an exceptional experience here in Kansas City. 

Top Gun Futures Event Preview

Top Gun Futures Event Preview

TGE Staff

Team name: Nebraska Quakes Gold Borgeson

Coach: Rich Borgeson 

Facebook: Nebraska Quakes Gold Borgeson

 

Spring & Summer Successes:

  • Ring Neck champions
  • USSSA State 3rd place
  • Silver bracket national champs 

 

Key players:

  • Teagan Stroud
  • Raelee Tackitt
  • McKinley Grojean
  • Josilyn Pieper 

 

Expectations for Fall: We are looking for lots of progression and mental toughness going into a new age bracket, we will be playing high level tourneys and win or lose we will keep getting better. 

 

Team Name: Nebraska THUNDER 2012

Coach Name: Chad Scebold (asst by Clay Tibke, Jacq Worth)

Twitter Handle: @NEThunder2012

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes:

  • Nebraska Class A State Runner-Up
  • CIS Des Moines Stars & Strikes Champs
  • USSSA MidWest 3X Tournament championships

 

Key Players: Elite pitching staff lead by Jaycey Hargens, Emma Rehmann and September George.  Kennedy Grose & Skylar Fitch behind the dish, making these 5 players a dangerous battery combination.

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season:  Our team is truly focused on players having fun and getter better every day.  

Our players are “all-in” … meaning they and understands that success occurs when our preparation meets opportunities.  That said, our coaching staff expects players to show up, work hard, compete and have FUN every time they step onto the field!

 

Team Name: Nebraska Gold 11u

Coach Name: Kyle Naughton

Twitter Handle: @negold2012s

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: 65-18, won 7/13 tournaments including Quakes Classic, Class A state, IA/IL state, and 6 in the spring (KC); runner-up in PG Elite 20 invite & USSSA Nationals

 

Key Players: ALL 11 players 

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season: play free, play fearless, and have lots of fun!

 

Team Name: Nebraska Quakes Fessler

Coach Name: Nick Fessler

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes:

  • 5th place out of 31 national teams in 12 Open at Road to the Show in OKC.
  • Hastings Hitfest Champions
  • 3rd place Quakes Classic. 

 

Key Players:

  • Kenzi Stoll
  • Cora Fessler
  • Kenna VonFeldt
  • Tessa Berner
  • Gianna Dannelly
  • Adrianna Moore
  • Tesni Lashley

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season:

Our expectations are to seek out the best competition we can find to develop these girls leading up to next summer in preparation for high school softball next year. 

 

Team Name:  Nebraska Wave Kroll 11U

Coach Name: Jeremiah Kroll

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: 

  • 5thplace USSSA Midwest National Championship

 

Key Players:

  • Zaniya Castor
  • Tatum Buckley
  • Millie Krueger
  • Piper Brown

Team Name: Top Gun 2K12 Premier

Coach Name: Jimmy Gallaway

Twitter Handle: 2K12TopGun

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: Newly formed this fall with girls from MO, KS and OK

 

Key Players: Every player is going to be equally important for us

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season: Play an extremely tough fall schedule to get these players familiar with each other ready for the spring season.

 

Team Name: Originals-Campbell

Coach Name: Tory Campbell

Twitter Handle: @OriginalsCB

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: New team

 

Key Players: All players are key as we start to gel as a team

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season: Development & gelling

 

Team Name: R.O.I. Midwest

Head Coach: Brad Kessler

Twitter Handle: @ROIFASTPITCH

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes:

Formerly Midwest Firecrackers, finished top 3 of all tournaments played and won USSSA Nationals and finished 3rd at Alliance Nationals Tier 1.

 

Key Players:

  • CC Mateo-00-Catcher
  • Gabriyella Kessler-#77-Shortstop/Pitcher
  • Raegan Brandt-#7-Pitcher/3rd base
  • Maisey McCarty-#55-Pitcher/1st Base

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season:

To continue to grow as players and a team and to continue to compete with the best in the country. 

 

Team Name: Aces NWA 14U

Coach Name:  Joel Garcia & Brittany Hoskins



Facebook: AcesFastpitchNWA14U

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: 

Finished 5th place in TX Southern Nationals out of 34 Teams

 

Key Players: 

  • Brooke Dixon
  • Aubrey Eiland
  • Harper Jernigan
  • Mallory Harvey
  • Emillie Curry
  • Taryn Stoner

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season:

Continue to improve. Get ready for tough Spring/Summer 2024

Already won Six in September Tournament in Kansas City and the Back to School Bash in Rogers, AR

 

Team Name: Ottawa Raptors 12 Beers 

Coach Name: Jason Beers 

 

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: Quality At Bats 

 

Key Players: All of THEM! 

 

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season: Growth in all aspects of the game. Raise IQ, take extra bases and hit with runners in scoring position. 

 

Team Name: Nebraska Gold 13U Zach       

Coach Name: Matt Zach

Twitter Handle: NeGoldZach13

2023 Spring/Summer Successes: 47-29-1 as a Fury Gold team. We were promoted to a Nebraska Gold team.

Key Players:

  • Brooklynn Rhode
  • Justice Love
  • Peyton Boone
  • Lily Thompson
  • Lillee Zach
  • Teagan Nielsen
  • Addy Smart
  • Jolie Eber
  • Maddie Craig
  • Kristyn Hayduk

Expectations for 2023 Fall Season: As a new team, we need to build a solid foundation with trust, communication, and just to get to know each other

 

Meet the TGE News Desk Writers!

Top Gun Events is excited to bring more awareness and provide recognition to the game we all know and love! In order to do so, we will be providing coverage on the regions top players, teams, coaches, as well as hot topics in our game. To assist in these efforts, we have added some new members to our team!

 

Rob Else

My name is Rob Else and I’m a cybersecurity consultant and softball dad from Omaha, Nebraska.  I first got involved with softball when my oldest daughter started playing on a club team in 2013.  Ever since then I’ve been hooked.

 Prior to my daughters playing softball, I coached 10 years of select baseball for the Omaha Gladiators.  I have also coached various softball teams throughout my daughter’s careers.  Currently my youngest daughter plays on a 13U club team.

 For the past couple of years, I’ve been covering high school softball in Nebraska with the goal of bringing recognition to players and teams.

Jeff Strange

Hailing from St. Louis, I’m a proud Midwesterner. I’ve been blessed to have been married to my wife for 19+ years and we have two amazing daughters – Aroa (16) and Annaliese (13). I’m a loyal St. Louis sports fan, diligently rooting for the STL Cardinals and STL Blues since my youth. However, my biggest passion now is being on the softball field, whether coaching my daughter’s Top Gun 2010 STL team or catching a game from the sidelines. I love the speed and purity of the game, and the passion and energy that these athletes bring is exciting to watch!

In addition to anything sports related, I enjoy music (a good live concert is soothing to the mind, body and soul), movies, cooking, traveling and reading. I’m a huge dog lover, with my German Shepherd Ruthie being a very loyal companion. 

During the day, I am a District Sales Manager for Mission Foods (in other words, a tortilla peddler) managing a network of distributors who deliver our product line of tortillas, chips and other items to your local grocery stores. I’ve been with the company for almost seven years, orchestrating and overseeing the growth of our position within the category. 

I’ve written sports articles in the past for various publications, and my love of talking softball has led me here. My hope and goals are to help provide insight into the softball world, highlighting some of the athletes, teams, coaches and feel-good stories that can help promote this game. Fastpitch viewership is consistently rising and I look forward to assisting in elevating the game!

Adam Howe

My name is Adam Howe and I have been a journalist for the better part of 25 years now.

I began my journalism career in sales. I have also been a Sports Editor, and I am now the Editor-In-Chief for two rural newspapers in midwest Missouri. I am also the host of a weekly high school football coach’s show broadcasted on the internet and do color commentary for our local high school football webcast. 

I began my journey in softball with my oldest daughter (now 19) over 12 years ago. She quickly moved through the ranks, played at the highest competitive level and is now a sophomore playing at the University of Evansville (IN). I also have a 15 year old daughter who is now also playing at the highest level and is embarking on her own recruiting trail to play collegiately soon. My son, who is 13, is a football player who hopes to also take his sport to the next level in the coming years. All three were/are 3-sport athletes.

I have been married to my wife for 20 years. In our “spare” time (when we are not chasing kids to a field or court), we enjoy the lake with friends. 

My hobbies include most all sports, fishing, playing golf, cards and reading other sports articles online. 

Top Gun Ranger

Top Gun Events brings to you this weekend the Top Gun Ranger, for teams of ages 10U through 18U. This event will take place Friday through Sunday (May 19-21) and is located in Overland Park, Kansas at Blue Valley Recreation Sports Complex.

 

The Top Gun Ranger is a first-year event and for many teams, will be their first Top Gun Tournament. These teams are looking forward to taking the next step into elite level softball and Top Gun Events is excited to assist them in doing so.

Teams include:

 

12U

Team Name: Ankeny Xtreme 12u black

Coach Name: Kelli Ott

Twitter Handle: @Ankeny_AGSA

2022 Nationals Results: 16/54 11u open

2022 Fall Successes: 3rd place in 12A State. We have lost in bracket play to a team from Peasant Valley Iowa in our last 2 state tournaments.  Finally earned a hard fought 1-0 win against them earlier this month.

Key Players:

  • Pitcher – Meryl Sandholm – good speed, hitting 53-55mph?  Incredible change. Opponent BA .142
  • SS – Breeze Bentz – Team leader and great athlete.
  • P – Cailey Horner
  • C – Emmy Ott
  • OF – Reagan Hogan
  • IF – Tenley Heidemann
  • OF – Kenlee Faber

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: This team is a “city” team that has played together since 8u.  All these players attend school in Ankeny, Iowa.  Ankeny Girls Softball only has teams through 12u.  Next year will bring changes for these girls, whether they move on to club ball or school ball.  They want to show they can hang with any of the club teams around the Midwest – and got a glimpse of their ability last year at Nationals.  They made the Gold bracket and finished in the top 16, though their goal was top 8.  This year they bring a little more size and have worked hard in the off-season – especially on their hitting.

 

Team Name: Nebraska Storm 12U

Coach Name: Cory Bachman – Assistants: Channon Oseka, Tony Eitzmann, Laura Marsh

Twitter Handle: @NEStorm12U

2022 Nationals Results:  USSSA Midwest Nationals — 23/53

2022 Fall Successes: We spent the greater part of the fall of 2022 ushering in four new kids and integrating them into our team.  We had two second place finishes in 12U tournaments and competed very well at the 14U age level.  Throughout the fall the girls created a very close relationship, began to understand roles and function as one. Overall, the girls did a phenomenal job of creating some great chemistry which has led us to a successful start to our spring/summer season.

Key Players:

  • Averi Bachman C/Utility
  • Alex Ballard P/SS
  • Skyla Whitten C/1B
  • Kourtney Dowding P/3B

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: As a coach, I would love for them to continue to grow both physically and mentally throughout the game.  When these girls play selfless, fast and aggressive the ceiling is extremely high. The girls have a lot of talent and ability, both of these will only get you so far.  We are working to teach them proper mindset, utilizing every girl’s drive to help them become the best version of themself on and off the field.  As a team, we look to continue playing deep into the weekend, every week pushing to achieve and attain goals set from within.  Most importantly, we truly and wholeheartedly want these kids to create memories and have fun, enjoying the time with one another.

 

Team Name: Synergy 12U Clurman

Coach Name: Cameron Clurman

Twitter Handle: No Twitter (Synergy Softball Organization, LLC for Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok)

2022 Nationals Results: 7th 11A Nationals

2022 Fall Successes: 2nd Place 12A Showcase

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: 100% Focus on Attitude and Effort with an improved record in 12A, Gold Flight Finish in all major events, and a Top 10 finish at 12A Nationals in Florida.

 

14U

Team Name: Athletics Russell 09

Coach Name: Sophia Lopez and Sydney Cure

2022 Fall Successes: 11-10-2 record

Key Players:

USA All American Selections (12u):

  • KP Pierson
  • Hayden Young
  • Tania Thomas

USSSA All American Selections (12u):

  • Addison Coffey
  • Sophie Young

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: Team is building towards making their Colorado Sparkler Debut in June.

 

Team Name: Originals 08

Coach Name: Jason Moss

Twitter Handle: @Original2008

2022 Nationals Results:

  • Top Gun Invite-Maverick- 12th place out of 44 teams. We were the last first year 14U team left before eliminated.
  • Midwest Nationals 9th place out of 51 teams
  • PGF Regionals Championships 5th place

2022 Fall Successes:

  • PGF National Qualifier-5th place
  • Perfect Game November KC Fall Showcase-1st place

Key Players:

  • Pitchers- Lucia Trevino, Maci Ann Cass, Katie Stephenson, Haylee Wait
  • Top Hitters: Katie Stephenson, Jacie Gentry, Maci Ann Cass, Riley Hollister, Brynlee Johnson, Tayah Garringer
  • Top Defense: Riley Hollister, Haylee Wait, Brynlee Johnson, Jacie Gentry, Alesa Kastle
  • Speed: Alesa Kastle, Allie Goble, Kyndall Hay, Lucia Trevino

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season:

  • 14 TG Spring Invite: Record
  • 5-1; 3rd place
  • Easton Ghost Series: Record 6-0; 1st place
  • Top Gun Heritage: Record 5-3; 1st place
  • PG Elite 40 Scouting Showcase-16/18U: Record 5-2; 3rd place

 

Future Tournaments:

TG Ranger

USA Memorial Day Invite

Tulsa Elite Summer Invite

Top Gun Invite

Colorado Sparkler Supplemental Power Pool

World Fastpitch Championship

 

Team Name: Team Kansas Elite 14U – Hays 14U

Coach Name: Patti Hays

Twitter Handle: @TeamKansasHays

 

Team Name: St. Louis Chaos 2010

Coach Name: Rachel Gill

Twitter Handle: @stlchaos2010

2022 Nationals Results: Top 10 USSSA

Key Players:

  • Kaelyn Deckerd P/SS .404 BA 635 SLG
  • Teresa Hutchcraft P/1B
  • Maddie Robinson SS/C .483 BA 672 SLG
  • Natalie House C/3B .417 BA

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: As a second year 12u team we have played all but 1 tournament at 14U thus far. We have won one and placed 2nd in another. This team is full of talent, and it has an incredible pitching staff.

 

16U

Team Name: Defiance Elite 16u Granquist

Coach Name: Kristen Granquist

Twitter Handle: @DefianceElite

2022 Nationals Results: Top 10 Finish, USFA Nationals

 

2022 Fall Successes:

High School Accomplishments (MO)

State Finishes–

Genny Greiwe (2024), 2nd Place MSHSAA Class 5 (Francis Howell HS)

Kenzie Ellison (2026), 2nd Place MSHSAA Class 5 (Francis Howell HS)

Ella Lause (2024), 3rd Place MSHSAA Class 4 (Washington HS)

Kiera Daniel (2025), 4th Place MSHSAA Class 4 (Warrenton HS)

 

RHP Evvie Blankenship (Sullivan HS, 2025)–

#3 in STL in Games Pitched (28)

Top 5 in STL in Complete Games (22)

Top 10 in STL in Shutouts (6)

Top 15 in STL in Strikeouts (156)

Top 25 in STL in ERA (2.47)

Top 25 in STL in Ks/Game (7.57)

 

RHP Emma Dixon (Winfield HS, 2025)–

Top 15 in STL in K/BB ratio (5.86)

Top 20 in STL in WHIP (1.03)

Top 25 in STL in ERA (2.58)

Top 35 in STL in Ks/Game (7.30)

 

INF Izzie May (North Point, 2026)–

Top 50 in STL in Runs Scored (34)

 

Key Players:

Our pitching staff has been one of the major keys to our success this year.

RHP Evvie Blankenship (Sullivan HS, 2025)– ERA: 2.1 // WHIP: 1.31 // K/INN: 0.85 // OBA: .237

RHP Emma Dixon (Winfield HS, 2025)– ERA: 0.86 // WHIP: 1.29 // K/BB: 7.0 // SAVES: 3

RHP Kenzie Ellison (Francis Howell HS, 2026)– W-L: 3-0 // K/INN: 0.98 // OBA: .250

 

Also, we have a great core of 2024’s who are looking to commit to play in college at some point this summer/fall.

INF UTL Ella Lause (Washington HS, 2024)–

State Championship 2021

CF Rachel Ross (Parkway North HS, 2024)–

Home to 1st: 2.85 // AVG: 0.412 // OPS: 1.006 // RBI: 8 (9 games)

INF Raina Ross (Parkway North HS, 2024)–

Home to 1st: 2.84 // SB: 4 (9 games) // AVG w/ RISP: 0.333

OF Genny Greiwe (Francis Howell HS, 2024)–

OPS: 1.700 // SLG: 1.200

Last weekend, Genny hit 2 HR in one game! Check our @DefianceElite TikTok page to see them!

C Brooklynn Kittrell (Pacific HS, 2024)–

OBP: 350 // – // Pop time: 1.84 sec // CS%: 40% // PB (27 inn.): 1

OF Morgan Braun (Sullivan HS, 2024)–

State Championship 2020

 

And the spark plugs of our team are…

INF Izzie May (North Point HS, 2026): AVG: 0.318 // OPS: 0.757 // Contact %: 86.36%

C/INF Lily Delmain (Eureka HS, 2025)– PB (21 inn.): 1 // OBP: 0.409 // OPS: 0.830 // RS (9 games): 7

INF Kiera Daniel (Warrenton HS, 2025)– Home to 1st: 2.84 // FPCT: 1.000 // BABIP: 0.667

OF Kiersten York (Liberty Wentzville HS, 2025)– Home to 1st: 2.69 // FPCT: 1.000 // OF Assists: 2

 

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: Our team is entering its second summer with the majority being returners from last year. Having played 4 tournaments already this spring, 2 getting rained out for Sunday, we’re happy with how we’ve grown up to this point. A few weeks ago, we finished top 3 in an HFL qualifier after earning 1st place in pool play.

This is a team of very competitive, driven players. I can honestly say I’ve never been a part of another team that has each other’s backs more and also holds one another accountable for the standards we have set.

Our team culture words our players chose for this season are Competitive. Relentless. Dedicated. United. And it is clear that they work every day as a team to uphold these traits.

 

Team Name: KC Bombers Gold Adkins (KC Bombers 16u)

Coach Name: Jamie Adkins

Twitter Handle: @KCBombersAdkins

Key Players:

  • Ps: Addison Cole, Trinity Krause
  • OFs: Hannah Winburn, Lindsey Green
  • IFs: Joselyn Gartner, Madison Dudok
  • Cs: Taylor Tessman, MJ Hoosier

Expectations for the 2023 Spring/Summer Season: Continue growing as a team and achieve a winning record in every tournament we attend.

 

Team Name: KC Phoenix 16U – DP

Coach Name: Drew Page

Twitter Handle: @16UPhoenixKC