Softball Insider: Staff hits the ground recruiting, on the verge of another big commitment

New South Carolina head coach Ashley Chastain and her staff have hit the ground running so to speak since being hired and there hasn’t been a day that’s gone by that the staff hasn’t been doing some type of recruiting.

That’s been a combination of in-home visits, assistant coaches on the road for eval purposes, and on-campus visits for most of the last couple of weeks.

The next week or so South Carolina will be well-represented as it heads out to Colorado which is home to the biggest summer tournaments of the year on the prospect circuit.

This staff certainly seems to “get it” when it comes to recruiting in general and has gone head first into the concept of recruiting the transfer portal to try and find instant impact players.

A huge focus for the staff right now is to try and get more “offensive” in adding impact bats to the roster. Ultimately, I know it’s a huge priority for this staff to recruit the state of South Carolina from a high school standpoint and to build a roster that way but the transfer portal will always be a part of what they do and is a huge priority right now given the expectations to win now in today’s college sports landscape. They want to reshape the roster right away.

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— Carolina got a huge boost at the plate with the addition of Charlotte transfer first baseman Arianna Rodi, who signed with the Gamecocks this week.

Rodi was considered the top first baseman in the country as an All-American according to Softball America while The Oklahoman had her as the No. 3 overall player available in the portal.

She hit .353 and slugged .788 with 22 home runs and 55 RBI with the 49ers this past season.

As her numbers suggest, Rodi is a physical presence at the plate who should provide an immediate impact to the lineup. Interestingly, the Rhode Island native was a top ice hockey player in high school, winning three state championships in the sport.

— Public transfer portal commits so far:

1B Arianna Rodi (Charlotte) [signed]

RHP Nealy Lamb (Charleston Southern) [signed]

C Lexi Winters (Charlotte) [signed]

RHP Sam Gress (Charlotte) [signed]

RHP Kadie Becker (Charlotte)

UTL Quincee Lilio (Oklahoma) [reported by D1 Softball]

— While again the portal is the current focus and in-state/overall high school recruiting may be more a part of the long-term plan, South Carolina is on the verge of landing an impact bat from the high school ranks too.

Chastain had an in-home visit with Fort Mill (S.C.) Catawba Ridge infielder Aubrey Wilson this week and Wilson is expected to be on campus for a visit soon.

I fully expect Wilson to go public with a pledge to the Gamecocks soon which would be another nice early-tenure win for Chastain and Co.

South Carolina has been battling Duke for her services, a team that eliminated the Gamecocks and made a run to the World Series this past season.

An All-State selection, Wilson hit .506 with 7 HR and 42 RBIs (according to The Herald) this season and was an All-State selection. Wilson was described to me as a dangerous power hitter at the plate and great, high character, high academic kid off the field.

The combination of Rodi and Wilson should provide a couple of impact bats this season.

— As is the case in any college sport in 2024, having the NIL resources to compete is a huge aspect of being successful.

While I’m told the fans have certainly stepped up since Chastain has been hired in helping provide the resources needed, the reality is that the NIL resources will have to continue to grow to compete in the SEC.

This isn’t a recruiting pitch but for anyone who feels so inclined, Garnet Trust has the Softball Diamond Fund which allows fans to directly support the softball program.

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