TEMPE – The Arizona State University softball program will add six newcomers to the squad next season as part of its 2016-17 signing class, as announced today by co-interim head coaches Robert Wagner and Letty Olivarez.
The well-rounded group of youngsters features three signees who appeared on the annual FLOSoftball ‘Hot 100’ recruits of 2016 and a class that has been rated as high as No. 12 nationally among all signing classes.
The signing class consists of two shortstops in Miranda “Randi” Farricker (Glendora High School/Glendora, Calif.) and Emily Ramelot (Martin Luther King HS/Riverside, Calif.), two outfielders in Allison Tatnall (El Segundo HS/El Segundo, Calif.) and Brianna “Breezy” Wise (Newbury Park HS/Newbury Park, Calif.), one pitcher in Alyssa Loza (North Torrance HS/Torrance, Calif.) and one catcher in Sierra Blair (Carondelet HS/Concord, Calif.).
“This class features a variety of young women who are accomplished both on the field and in the classroom,” co-interim head coach Robert Wagner said. “We were able to bring in a well-rounded group that satisfies several positions on the field while giving us some pop in the batting order and we are excited to see what the can accomplish in the Maroon and Gold.”
Sierra Blair (Carondelet HS/Concord, Calif.) is the sister of current Sun Devil freshman first baseman Taylor Blair and one of the top catchers nationally in the 2016 graduating class.
A career .425 hitter at Carondelet, Balir has 39 RBI, six home runs and 20 doubles in her first three seasons with the Cougars. Her top season came as a freshman as she bat .448 with 14 RBI, nine doubles, two triples and three home runs.
Known for having a cannon for an arm, Blair threw out 12 of the 13 batters that attempted to steal a base against her during her freshman campaign.
Blair was namd the the Contra Costa Times All-East Bay second team following her junior season this past year as well as her sophomore year, where she and her sister helped lead Carondelet to the NCS Division II title game.
She has been named an Easy Bay Athletic Bay first-team catcher in each of her three seasons with the program and reported over 20 offers from around the country.
Miranda “Randi” Farricker (Glendora High School/Glendora, Calif.) is a shortstop and a vital cog for a Glendora High School team that won the Palomares League Title last season and advanced the second round of the 2015 CIF Souther Section 2 playoffs.
Rated the No. 94 player on FloSoftball’s 2016 ‘Hot 100’ list, Farricker led her Tartan squad with a .515 batting average on the year, knocking a team-leading nine doubles with two home runs and 21 RBI. Her efforts garnered her recognition as the Glendora High Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-League and All-Area nods.
Farricker finished the season with a .602 on-base percentage while slugging .702 on the year.
She was named the MVP at the Regional High School All-Star Game last season as well and an all-around athletes that competing at the CIF championships in the long jump and 200-meter dash as a freshman and sophomore.
Farricker helped her Corona Angels club squad the title at the 2015 PGF Fall Shootout and a fifth place finish at the PGF National Championships in the 18U Division and a third place finish at the event in the 16U Championships in 2014.
That 16U squad earned a National Championship at the 2013 16U TC/USA Nationals and was also a finalist at the Louisville Slugger Independence Day Tournament in 2014.
Alyssa Loza (North Torrance HS/Torrance, Calif.) is the lone pitching recruit in the class and one that comes with plenty of praise.
Ranked as the No. 23 player in the FLOSoftball ‘Hot 100’ recruits of the 2016 class, Loza comes to the Sun Devils with a lot of upside and the skill set to make all the pitches necessary to be successful in the Pac-12.
Loza will play her final seasons of prep ball at North Torrance High School after a sophomore and junior campaign at Torrance High. Her junior year saw her earned an All-Area nod from the Daily Breeze as she posted a 9-3 record with a 2.88 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 71 innings as she helped lead the team to the CIF Southern Section Division IV Championship.
As a sophomore she was an All-Area second team selection for the Tartars, going 10-5 with two saves and a 1.42 ERA while fanning 98 in 91 innings pitched.
Loza is the ace for the Explosion-Denio/Wilson 18U Gold Club team and helped her squad to a 13th-place finish at the 2015 Premier Girls Fastpitch Championships. Prior to joining the Explosion, Loza helped the So Cal Chopper Club program to a 13th place finish at the 2014 PGF 16U Premier Championships and a 17th place finish in 2013 in the 14U Championship.
Emily Ramelot (Martin Luther King HS/Riverside, Calif.) is a shortstop that helped lead her Riverside King squad to a 18-9 record last season and a berth in the CIF Southern Division I playoffs.
In her freshman season in 2013, the Wolves earned the Big VIII league title in a dramatic 3-2 victory over eventual CIF Southern Section runner-up Norco that was spearheaded by Ramelot’s fourth-inning home run that would hold as the eventual game winner.
Ramelot followed that effort in her sophomore campaign as she helped lead King to a 28-6 record all the way to the Southern Section Division I title game, where it dropped a 1-0 decision to Pacifica.
Ramelot bat .398 for her Explosion club team this past season, adding five doubles, two home runs and 11 RBI.
Allison Tatnall (El Segundo HS/El Segundo, Calif.) is a rangy center fielder that provides the perfect combination of power and speed both at the plate and in the outfield.
Rated as the No. 73 player in FLOSoftball’s ‘Hot 100’ for 2016, Tatnall was named to the All-CIF Division IV Southern Section team and also earned a honorable mention nod on the 2015 All-State team after batting a monstrous .513 with seven home runs and 30 RBI.
Last year, she led her Eagle squad to the CIF Southern Section Division IV semifinals, where it lost a heartbreaking 4-3 decision to Ramona in 10 innings.
A three-time All-League honoree and two time All-Area selection Breeze was also named a first team Daily Breeze selection after her sophomore year at El Segundo where she finished with a .444 clip and 18 RBI.
That year, the lefty power hitter added three triples, six doubles and scored 31 runs while tabbing an impressive 11 outfield assists.
Brianna “Breezy” Wise (Newbury Park HS/Newbury Park, Calif.) is a power hitting outfielder and was the top-hitting player as a junior on her Newbury Park squad last season.
Wise bat .457 on the year with 18 RBI and 13 extra base hits, including five home runs – good for second on the team. Her .548 on-base percentage was over 100 points higher than any other player on her Panther team while slugging .857.
Her efforts garnered her recognition as the Most Outstanding offensive Player in the Marmonte League in addition to being named First Team All-Ventura County, First Team All-CIF Southern Section and Second Team All-State.
She was named to the Los Angeles Daily New Players to Watch in each of the past two seasons. She led her team in batting as a freshman with a .386 average in 2013 with fur doubles, five triples and three home runs as 12 of her 27 hits on the season went for extra bases.
The 2015-16 Sun Devils are just over two months away from opening their season, kicking things off with the annual Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz., beginning Thursday, Feb. 11.