TheSoftballZone

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I have read posts on OFC for a while, usually at my best friend house. I have always had a passion for the sport and I am a retired coach (travel and HS). Many of my former players are now becoming the parents of a DD in softball and I have fielded a lot of questions recently about which organizations to look at with the tryouts coming up in the fall. I get this question frequently and one of the parents suggested I break an old habit (of not posting on online sites) and actually register and start posting some.

Well, this is a post to answer the question in the title bar. Remember, this is just my opinions based on my observations from attending tournaments in Ohio (and sometimes Michigan). I do not intend to slight any organizations as there are some that I do not know as well as others.. Without further ado.. here is my list that I would recommend parents to at least check out. I will recommend that you check out more than one and don't allow yourself to be pressure to "sign now, or lose your spot. That type of hardsell is a bad sign.

(Please, this is in no particular order so don't read anything into the order they are posted)

Ohio Ice - they have a history of being good and well coached. I like Mr. Poole. ?He has the knack of attracting good talent and is a good coach. All of the Ice teams seem to do well. I have seen the 14U Poole team more than the others and they are a very talented team. They are from the Alliance Ohio area and draw a good deal of girls from Cleveland/Akron area. Worth the drive for a tryout, if travel is not a problem.

Stingrays - Stingrays have the rep to attract a good number of talented young ladies. Their success is well know throughout Ohio. They run a nice tournament that attracts nice team. The older 14U team seems to be very talented as does the older 16U and 18U team. Definately warrants a look at this fall. I saw all of the Stingray team play at OSU and there is not a weak team in the bunch.

Wolfpack - Ranks up there with Ohio Ice as far as an overall talented organization. I had the opportunity to watch several of their age groups and they all seem to do well and are well coached. I have seen several of their teams over the last few years and they always seem to finish at the top of the pack. (hence the name WolfPACK). I had the names of the coaches, but I cannot find them anywhere at this time. I may ammend the post later. If you can travel up north, you should check this organization out this fall.

Buckeye Heat - I found out that this is not a new organization, but the new name for the Worthington Heat. I have seen several of these teams this year and I am impressed. The 16U team is a dominant team coached by coach Abraham. ?They are well coached and have great pitching. I have seen the 18U team play and they are very solid. I saw the younger 14U team (13U) play recently and they are loaded with hitters and are a few players away from being dominant themselves. They are very good. I would definatley check out this organization this fall if you are withing driving distance from central Ohio.

MV Express - In the Dayton area, you should check out the MV Express. There is a varying level of success, but the younger team is very good. I have not seen the older teams so I cannot give an opinion. If I see them playbefore August, I will re-post the information.

NWO Irish - I had the opportunity to seesome of the teams play recently. ?In the Toledo area, this in one you want to visit along with the SGS Magic another very good organization. Toledo is blessed with severalfine organizations.

Lasers- One of the best organizations in Ohio as they have experience success in many of the best tournaments in the country. They were at one time considered to be the bestthat Ohio has to offer, but the increase in the level of softball in the state has given the Lasers a lot of competition for that title. They are a very good organization and they fact that they have competition for the title of the best gives testimony that level of softbal in Ohio is on the rise.


Cincinannti area - I have not had the chance to see many Cincy teams in the last several years so I cannot offer any opinion as of now. Maybe some of you can help out here.

Well, this is what I tell people when they ask my opinion. Now I can save a few breaths and tell them to check out my first post on OFC.

God Bless Softball (but not soccer)
 

DanMaz

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curious now Ricky.

whats your 2020 version look like? what has changed?
 

TheSoftballZone

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That's really not for me to decide. If I was actually coaching I would be able to make a fair assessment and evaluation on the current status on organizations. But with that said I believe the only way to find out is by having a poll and let the members decide what the current status is.
 

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