THE FLATS – Georgia Tech softball head coach Aileen Morales added eight student-athletes to the 2020-21 roster as part of the fall signing period. The group includes three pitchers, three infielders and two outfielders.
The Jackets’ 2021 class is ranked No. 17 in the nation and the top class in the state by Extra Inning Softball, and five student-athletes garnered recognition on the Extra Inning Softball 2021 Extra Elite 100.
“I am proud of our coaching staff for their relentless work on the recruiting trail, resulting in a top-20 class,” Morales said. “This class is highlighted by an impressive amount of talent specifically from our home state, and the southeast. It is an honor to welcome this talented group of young women to the Georgia Tech softball family. I am confident they will excel on the field, in the classroom, and in our community.”
Pitchers
Kinsey Norton, RHP (Woodstock, Ga/Etowah High School)
Norton comes to Georgia Tech from Woodstock, Ga. The right-handed pitcher ranks No. 50 overall and No. 29 among pitchers nationally on the Extra Inning Softball 2021 Extra Elite 100. A three-time all-state, all-county and all-region honoree, Norton helped lead Etowah High School to regional titles in 2017 and 2020, and owns school records for most career strikeouts and most strikeouts in a season. She was named 2020 Region Pitcher of the Year, while also being named to the GA Dugout All-Star Senior team and GA All-Star Junior team. In addition to her accomplishments off the field, Norton was named Wendy’s Heisman Scholarship School winner. She intends to major in industrial design at Georgia Tech.
Sophia Voyles, RHP (Dalton, Ga./Coahulla Creek High School)
Voyles joins the Yellow Jackets from Dalton, Ga, and ranks No. 62 overall and No. 35 among pitchers nationally on the Extra Inning Softball 2021 Extra Elite 100. The right-hander helped Coahulla Creek high school to a regional title in 2020. She earned All-Area Player of the Year in 2019, and holds school career and season records in wins, strikeouts and ERA. She is a National Honor’s Society member and a French Honor’s Society member, and intends to major in psychology at Georgia Tech.
Emma Minghini, LHP (Rock Springs, Ga./Gordon Lee High School)
Minghini comes to Georgia Tech from Rock Springs, Ga. A two-time GADC Class A Player of the Year, Minghini also earned first team all-state and all-region honors in 2018 and 2019. During her time at Gordon Lee high school, Minghini threw over 500 strikeouts, finishing with a 0.81 ERA. The lefty was also a force at the plate, with a career .450 batting average while helping lead her squad to four Class A state championship titles. She also won an ASA/USA national championship with the Tennessee Mojo in 2018, and was named Chattanooga Time Free Press Best of Preps and Walker County Pitcher of the Year in 2019. She ranked No. 60 among pitchers (No. 112 overall) by Extra Inning Softball. Her intended major is biomedical engineering.
Infielders
Grace Connelly, INF (Suwanee, Ga./North Gwinnett High School)
Connelly joins the Yellow Jackets from Suwanee, Ga. and attended North Gwinnett High School, where she helped lead the team to two regional titles in 2017 and 2019, and state runner-up in 2020. The middle infielder earned all-county honors in her junior and senior seasons, and was named a GADC Senior All-State Game selection in 2020. She ranked No. 64 nationally in the Extra Inning Softball 2021 Extra Elite 100, where she was also tabbed the No. 50 infielder in the country. Connelly intends to major in industrial engineering.
Bailey Chapin, INF (Marietta, Ga./Pope High School)
Chapin comes to The Flats from Pope High School, where she helped lead them to a state championship in 2019 and regional titles in all four seasons (2017-2020). Named all-state (2018, 2019), all-region (2018, 2019, 2020) and all-county (2018, 2019), Chapin is also Pope High School’s career home run leader. She ranks No. 68 nationally in the Extra Inning Softball 2021 Extra Elite 100, where she was also tabbed the No. 54 infielder in the country. A member of the National Honors Society for science, math and social studies, Chapin intends to major in biology at Georgia Tech.
Madison Dobbins, INF (Dacula, Ga./Mill Creek High School)
Madison Dobbins joins the Yellow Jackets from Dacula, Ga. She was named all state in 2020 and all county in 2017 and 2020. Dobbins helped lead Mill Creek high school to a regional title in 2018. She is ranked No. 143 among infielders in the country (No. 210 overall) by Extra Inning Softball. Dobbins was an honor roll member, and intends to major in biomedical engineering at Georgia Tech.
Outfielders
Auburn Dupree, OF (Gadsden, Ala./Gadsden City High School)
Dupree is a left-handed hitting outfielder from Gadsden, Ala. She was named all-county at Gadsden City High School in 2018, where she also set the school stolen base record. Dupree is ranked No. 91 overall and No. 42 among outfielders in the Extra Inning Softball Top 100. She also won the Jo Cup two years in a row with the Tennessee Mojo. Dupree intends to major in health science at Georgia Tech.
Ella Edgmon, OF (Dunlap, Tenn./Sequatchie County High School)
Edgmon comes to The Flats from Dunlap, Tenn., where she helped Sequatchie County High School to district championships in her freshman and sophomore seasons. A two-time all-district honoree and two-time Best of Preps honoree by Chattanooga Times Free Press, Edgmon was also a three-time national Player of the Week by Extra Inning Softball. She owns the school record for career stolen bases, and tied the school record with four stolen bases in a game in the state tournament in 2019. She intends to major in business at Georgia Tech.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the A-T Fund’s Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes, and the Support The Swarm Fund, created to give fans an opportunity to help Georgia Tech athletics maintain its recent momentum through the financial challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic! To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Twitter (@GaTechSoftball), Facebook (Georgia Tech Softball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.
