GAME TIME LIMITS

A little off subject but since it keeps getting mentioned. Trophies are worth something because of what they represent. High school conference trophies are highly valued. State high school championship trophies (rings) are highly valued. Winning a prestigious state tb tournament championship is highly valued and should be rewarded and usually is with a trophy of some type. A national championship is highly valued and should be rewarded with a trophy.

Whether it's hs, tb, aau, asa, usssa, nsa, etc., winning those state or national championships is an achievement that doesn't need to be swept aside so lightly. Trophies have their place and I believe they should be recognized and valued for what they represent. There is a lot of hard work, blood, sweat, and tears in earning those trophies. The girls should take great pride in earning them!

 

+1000

 

what I've noticed with softball is that there are too many so called "national" tournaments,especially at the younger ages. Write a check and your team is in a world series! When my son was going through AAU baseball it was darn tough to make it into the Nationals. It may be different now with more "daddyball" teams flooding AAU and USSSA. I really think he went through at the best time here in NC.
Maybe what is needed is some "invitation only" elite tournaments here in North Carolina to showcase the best teams/players from North Carolina. Say an eight team tournament where everyone plays a full game each outing and all the players can show their stuff. Again, I reference what's happening with baseball here in NC... Look at the Impact tournaments and you will see great talent on every team competing. Andy Partin is in complete control of who is in these tournaments and he stakes his reputation on having the best possible players there for the college/pro guys to evaluate. There are no trophies awarded, but there is a lot of pride in being the best, as is natural.
Ya'll are right, it does need to be fun, or more accurately, it needs to be something the players love to do. Because at the college level there is a heck of a lot more work than play!
I certainly don't know a lot about softball and you folks that coach these teams have my respect. You can give boys a cussin' or a kick in the butt to help them get motivated, but with the girls you guys deal with much more emotions and feelings... and that's way out of my league!
What I'm getting at in this discussion is mainly targeted towards what is best for the future college players. If a team in a tournament has two or three girls that want to go on and play in college and the rest are there just to enjoy playing and being with friends, then that is not a showcase caliber team. Those two or three girls need to be on a team where the whole roster wants to play college ball. At some point an athlete has to get serious about their goals.

 

....uhhhh, ok.
Now G., "intangibles" are very important as in...when you strike out, you go back to the dugout and don't sling snot all the way. "Intangibles" like how you act in the parking lot before or after games. "Intangibles" like how you warm up before a game.
As an estimate IMO, 1 in 1000 kids might get a look from a coach who was attending a game to watch some other kid. Who cares about 1 in 1000?
I say bust your butt to be the best that you can be on and off the field.
As a player, one needs to control what they have control over. In other words, if you, as a player, have put in your time to prepare to best of your abilities prior to game play, then thats all you can do.
It like a business, if you'll pay attention your pennys, nickels, dimes, and quarters, ......the dollars will take care of themselves.

 

Win/Lose/Serious?

We play a great deal showcase ball but we always play to win! Where does everyone get the idea our players or coaches do not care about winning? We play all our girls because all of them are good enough to play at any point and all want to play college ball as Fishman and others have pointed out. Go to Dynamite, Boulder, Pennsbury, Rising Stars, Bandits, and Cardinals and tell me any of the teams do not want to win. My team wants to win every game we play! Come play us and see!
Camps are truly great ways to be seen but can not provide 100's of coaches at one time. Plus you must do your work ahead of time whether you attend a camp or tourney. Check the percentage of kids that attend UNC or other college camp as an example and get recruited to play there!
Quote! "If they are good, they will be recruited, no matter where they play or what they do", HOGWASH! That is like saying you will get that dream job just because you are good at what you do! If you do not have a great resume, good contacts, work hard to get your name and skills out there, you will not get the job over someone that does use every opportunity available. There are thousands of kids seeking the same "opportunity", you have to stand out! Please don't give kids the impression it is easy or they will be disappointed, help them use every source they can to seek their dream, profiles, reference letters, skill videos, camp attendance, showcase events, clinics, state tournaments, national tournaments.
Now scholarships! Correct statement that many softball offers are not huge dollar figures, however being a quality player helps get more academic and supplemental money for college! Don't downplay the importance of being involved in elite softball events as they truly do help you achieve an overall success as many job clinics, job fairs, etc.
Listen to each his own! Don't criticize others because they do not do as you do. All of you have opinions and all of you have things that work and are good ideas, use items from each to get the most from your efforts

 

Abbyfan. I agree with most of what you posted. You have to get your name out there and you stated several ways to be known of which the least helpful is showcase tournaments. You stated to get that schloarship you have to stand out form the 1000 others, well that just probablly won't happen at a showcase. I don't think anyone here is saying the teams don't go to win only when you go to most of the showcases there is nothing to win. I think you and others who do great things for the girls have forgotten a little what is really important and it is not the little $3000 scholarships but it is having fun with your life. And I promise you I've seen both the showcase and the regular tournaments and by far the most fun I see the girls having at both is when they are lifting the trophies they just won. Just think we have lost perspective about what is important even in everyday life. Life should be about having fun every day and so should palying this game. I have known a lot of girls who have gone on to college and everyone told me that it was OK but no where near the fun they had in high school and travelball. That tells me something about what is important. I think many coaches have gotten to hung up on being able to say I got this many girls a scholarship. I'd rather say I had this many girls who had the time of their lives play softball. Not saying playing in a showcase isn't fun, it is. Just something is lacking when you play for 3 days and everyone goes home and nobody won. That is not what sports are about.

 

I appreciate all the feedback from my initial post. I agree with many of the posts about getting time limits to 1 hour 30 minutes as a standard. If you are interested, please let me know as I am preparing some letters to go to the various NC tournament directors (and any others that you wish) with coaches names on them - stating our desire to have a minimum of 1 hour 30 minutes for pool and bracket play (not including showcase tournaments). If you are interested in signing your name, please let me know.

 

The intangibles I was referring to were along the lines of talent and desire. One without the other will not give you a top prospect. Read Tony LaRussa's book "Three Nights in August" and you'll find LaRussa's opinion of JD Drew's "intangibles"... great talent, questionable desire, or in other words, how not to be a Hall of Famer!

 

Missed that memo. I can promise you fun is not one of the first things I think of when I think back over the years of being battered with a softball while my dd worked day after day pitching. I don't think fun fit into the tons of ice that went on her shoulder and the hundreds of ibutabs she took for pain and inflamation. But I can say without hesitation there are some very valuable life lessons gained such as the need for a strong work ethic, determination, a positive attitude, how to fail and and have the backbone to work harder, how to deal with people and be a part of a team, to appreciate the individual value of each team member, to feel the sense of accomplishment when you have gone beyond your ability because of an investment of time and energy in a worthwhile endeavor. Fun is temporary.

The goal is to prepare and be prepared for life. I will ever be thankful for the experiences my dd has had with softball.....the good, the bad, and the ugly.

As for the recruiting process...I fully agree with Abbey....It doesn't just happen. The time limits set on games is a miniscule piece of the puzzle. It takes dedication on the part of the player and the coach. I can only speak from my personal experience but I know without question my dd's coach spent endless hours on the phone, sending emails, and going here and there to put her in the position to have the opportunity to play and make wise decisions about her future. When she made the decision as to where she would attend school he made certain the contacts were made and visited the school with her. There may be coaches who have the wrong goals and attitude. I'm just thankful they're not included in our experience.

Done now...I know I missed the thread topic but.....jmho