In an area loaded with softball talent and as the season gets underway, here are our picks for five players to watch in 2026 across The Times coverage area.

Tessa Krull, Seneca, P/2B, sr.

The 2025 Times Softball Player of the Year and a Division-I Indiana State recruit, Krull will look to put an exclamation point on her high school career leading the state championship contender Fighting Irish. Her junior year, Krull was 23-1 with a 0.97 ERA and batted .373 with 36 RBIs.

Bobbi Snook, Ottawa, C/UT, jr.

Perhaps the most dangerous slugger in an area filled with great hitters, Snook – a unanimous Times All-Area first-team selection and third-team ICA All-State pick – is coming off a season that saw her tag seven home runs while batting .382 with a 1.179 OPS for the Pirates.

Hunter Hopkins, Marquette, SS/P, jr.

Another unanimous choice to our 2025 Times All-Area Team, Hopkins is coming off a phenomenal, all-state sophomore campaign for the Crusaders that saw her bat .607 with five home runs, 32 RBIs and an eye-popping 1.553 OPS.

Rylie Carlson, Newark, OF/P, so.

What a freshman season it was – .560 batting average, 43 RBIs, a 1.472 OPS, 11 pitching victories – for the Times All-Area first-teamer and ICA All-State pick. What will the young Norsemen standout have in store for Act II?

Piper Lewis, Ottawa, SS, jr.

As a sophomore, Lewis – a Division-I Kentucky commit – was already one of the top players in the area. The Pirates shortstop earned Times All-Area first-team status by batting .400 with five home runs, 28 RBIs and a 1.192 OPS.