How Important is High School Softball?

Well if you look at all the rosters of college teams they seem to list your h.s stats and some mention what summer team you played for so both can play a part.As a parent of a future college student if you plan on playing ball yours grades are going to be the most important thing 2.0 you better be real good 3.7 you got to be good but thats the kind of kid they want to work with.With the popularity of softball theres all kinds of good players div 1,2,3,but a good student will go along way.

JoeA1010 said:

The main thing I would be checking out if a girl didn't play h.s. ball is her intangibles. I realize it's possible the h.s. coach might be so bad that it's justifiable, but it sends me a red flag. I would be watching her very close in the summer as far as her interactions with teammates, coaches and everyone else. About the only way I could excuse not playing high school is if the coach is just a really bad person, or maybe a combination of the coach being a poor coach along with the team being terrible. Just having a bad team is not enough of an excuse.

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Just got back from having lunch with two Division 1 College Softball coaches and asked them this question. They said they don't care about H.S. ball or even really look at it. If the player is good (and grades are good), they could care less if they played for their H.S.

I was at the NCAA WS in OKC last year and I attended the YES clinic with my daughter. They had a session for the parents where they discussed recruiting, financial aid, the differences between Div 1, 2, 3, JUCO, and NAIA and they were very adamant that they 100% recruit based on travel ball competition.

A few points in regards to some of the posts above:

1. From my experience, many and perhaps most of the D1 schools are looking for the best players they can find, period. If you have good grades, so much the better, but talent is by far the #1 criteria. And they judge the talent pretty much only on good travel ball competition. A bunch of 4.0 students who hit .200 will get a coach fired. The 2.8 students who hit .350 will keep the coach employed and earning coach of the year honors.

2. I have heard of D3 schools where the coaches are evaluated mainly on how many students they bring in. I can only relate my own experience, which seems to be that we want to try to build a winning program and to do it with well-rounded student-athletes. There hasn't been a single word about bringing in numbers for the sake of enrollment. In fact, our successful cross country/track coach has publicly stated he has moved away from bringing in large numbers and is focusing on smaller numbers and better quality. When our AD saw how hard I am working at recruiting, he did tell me he could probably arrange to have a JV team funded if I wanted, but that's not a direction I want to travel, and he didn't seem anxious to have me do it.

3. I think at D1 and maybe D2 h.s. stats and honors probably are totally irrelevant. But at D3, I think a 1st-team or 2nd-team all-state player in one of the bigger divisions or 1st-team all-league in a good league is pretty telling. So I do take a look at that type of thing. At a minimum with that type of honor, I know the girl will at least be a solid player who I need to make sure I see in the summer and who I will not have to cut if she comes here.

4. I likely won't see any high school games, as we are practicing and playing during those games. Nonetheless, I am making contacts with all of the local high school coaches.

5. With the one girl in ICarryTheBags post, a girl who is in band, has excellent grades, is involved in the school, etc., would not present any worries for me that she isn't playing h.s. softball. Normally the band kids are well-rounded students and are not attitude problems. The next time I have a band kid who is a bad student, lazy and has a poor attitude will be the first time.

6. I have no great revelations now as a college coach than I had as a high school/travel coach. If some big secret exists in judging players, no one has shared it with me.

Interesting topic, I normally just lurk the various boards but this one hits a nerve?

?How important is high school softball?? From our experience, it?s not important at all (at least not if the objective is to play at the next level). ?Is travel ball more important?? Yes, but only if you do the work to get the coaches to come watch her play.

My daughter didn?t play one inning of high school ball and yet she?s playing on a D1 team this year. High school = Politics?

We observed what Joe stated, that the JC?s, NAIA?s, and D3?s had more interest in HS, but the D2?s and D1?s were less interested in HS stats and more about talent they saw and grades.

Best of Luck in your decision,
Fatboy

Just went through it. Grades first. Excelled classes first. Then if your talented, so be it. That way there is no guessing. Going through it again real soon.

Jeff Klopfer
Classics 14U

All high school sports are important if my dd truly enjoys playing them. What about community pride? I think it is becoming a forgotten concept. (NFL loyalty excluded - that is professional)

A a die hard Browns fan... I can't believe I'm saying this, but I couldn't agree more with the "community" aspect of the sport raised by ohlovesteeelers. Advancing deep into the state tournament is something entire communities can rally around! I think those from Elyria, Hudson, LaGrange (there are others in regions all over Ohio) would agree.

I believe the true answer to this question has to take into account each girls different situation. With the original question being "what high school softball can do for a girl to get her ready for the next level", I think it can be very beneficial to play HS ball. Even in an average HS program you get the opportunity to play softball 6 days a week. At the start of the season you have 5-6 days of practice. That practice time is vital to skill development that will make you a better player. At least in my area, travel teams usually practice just 2 times a week. If the HS program offers no real skill development than it may be a waste of time.

Not all HS programs automatically equal politics. One persons opinion about a program being driven by politics may be argued by another parent who veiws the situation differently. I know several travel teams that are driven by politics and others that don't develop skills or give quality exsposure. Again, every situation is different.

Bottom line is, if the girl is good, she will find a travel team that provides exposure and skill development. However, there are still benefits to playing HS for preparing for the next level. Preparation and exposure are different things.

Hitter1 said:

A a die hard Browns fan... I can't believe I'm saying this, but I couldn't agree more with the "community" aspect of the sport raised by ohlovesteeelers. Advancing deep into the state tournament is something entire communities can rally around! I think those from Elyria, Hudson, LaGrange (there are others in regions all over Ohio) would agree.

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I agree as well. There is something special about being able to compete for championships with kids you grew up with as well as the feeling competing for the name on the front of the jersey.

We shoot for her grades first. If she doesn't keep them up, she wont play softball AT all. That is and has always been the rule. We know colleges look at HS grades. Hopefully her talent will get her noticed but even if it doesn't she is going to College regardless.

For us, it is as important for her to play HS as it is for my daughter. She will get to play with all her REC ball friends that she grew up with since age 6 playing softball. Even though shes a very competitive player now, she knows the reality, It isn't her Travel Team, so she wont be disappointed at losses & be thrilled to death to help the team win if she can.
Her small town HS doesn't rank very high as far as Softball stats go (YET), but it really doesn't matter to her as long as she gets to play softball!

When you speak of high school softball, you have to go back to the spirit of interscholastic sports. High School sports at one time were the end all to beat all. It is too bad that OHSAA rules stifled most the sports from its purest form.

Sports in general at the high school level are very important. It may be what keeps a small town or rural community thriving through out the year; it will give urban and intercity kids the chance to compete when they may not be able to otherwise.

I'm not comparing the level of competition or chances for scholarships in softball between high school and travel. It's the way sports were intended to be played, and should be a very important component of any athletes life. Forget the camaraderie, the memories, or the community - it is about many, many, things at that very moment!

Play high school softball and enjoy!

oldtimer said:

When you speak of high school softball, you have to go back to the spirit of interscholastic sports. High School sports at one time were the end all to beat all. It is too bad that OHSAA rules stifled most the sports from its purest form.

Sports in general at the high school level are very important. It may be what keeps a small town or rural community thriving through out the year; it will give urban and intercity kids the chance to compete when they may not be able to otherwise.

I'm not comparing the level of competition or chances for scholarships in softball between high school and travel. It's the way sports were intended to be played, and should be a very important component of any athletes life. Forget the camaraderie, the memories, or the community - it is about many, many, things at that very moment!

Play high school softball and enjoy!

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I grew up just a few miles from Steubenville. If you want to learn a little something about representing your high school and your community, get to know a bit about Steubenville Big Red.

http://www.rollredroll.net/

How often do you see an Ohio Division IV High School Football Stadium that looks like this? http://www.rollredroll.net/DeathValleypics.htm
This is one community that is very serious about high school sports.


The median income for a family in Steubenville is $36,597 according to Wikipedia.

Holy ****!!!

Nice digs!

My daughter was homeschooled her whole life until this year. She wanted to give school a shot, and I think high school softball was the main reason. She's a freshman, and has really enjoyed the team, the coach was great, it was becoming a real good experience...then the coach get's canned two nights ago. Now we're all wondering what the heck is going on. She's pretty upset, and isn't sure she made the right decision. We're kind of wondering now too, we were very comfortable with this coach and really trusted him, then the school fires him. That's a great situation to land in...

rcpae said:

My daughter was homeschooled her whole life until this year. She wanted to give school a shot, and I think high school softball was the main reason. She's a freshman, and has really enjoyed the team, the coach was great, it was becoming a real good experience...then the coach get's canned two nights ago. Now we're all wondering what the heck is going on. She's pretty upset, and isn't sure she made the right decision. We're kind of wondering now too, we were very comfortable with this coach and really trusted him, then the school fires him. That's a great situation to land in...

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Great life lesson. What do you do now? Do you fold up your chair and head home or do you rally her and say sometimes life does not go your way and make the best of it?
I'm not saying the situation does not stink. I think it can be a great opportunity to learn.

Playing any high school sport is a joy for students. To represent you’re school maybe getting your name in the local newspaper, and hearing your name on the announcements at school. There are alot of girl's that play multiple sports ******, Volleyball, basketball and softball in high school. Travel will help you get exposure to bigger schools, but you still can be multidimensional and play a sport in college with-out going the travel route. Let your kids enjoy high school sports and play high school softball.

Lady Cougars, I am a graduate of the Big Red and you are right there is a pride back in the Valley about sports. I love that stadium and when it is full with 10,000 it is a sight to see. They are just 2 wins away from their 10th state title.

I have a girl who plays on my summer team and as a freshman this year started varsity in Field Hockey and helped her team to the State Championship game. I told her before the game that no matter how many tournament finals or nationals we got to in the summer she will never match the experience in travel softball that she will feel representing her school and community in a High School state championship.

I doubt it is a coincidence that your screen name is Lionsfastpitch and mine is LadyCougars. We both chose a name that proudly represents something bigger than ourselves...our kids, their school, and our communities. That, we learned in the Valley!

Okay, here is a variation question ...

Okay, "I have this friend" who has a dd who is a freshman. The parents think she "may" be recruitable in 2 sports, basketball and softball. Debateable which will ultimately be the best one, if any.

Let's say that the dd does not make the Varsity softball team in the spring (it will be a state contender), and elects to play AAU basketball at a VERY high level ather than playing "JV softball" because it is a better "time/value" proposition for the individual and her future. The intent would then be to play a very high level of summer travel ball and then trying out for the Varsity again the following year.

Is that HS softball "political suicide" ... I am thinking that it probably is as she may not appear to be a "team player" willing to put in her time, but rather than playing "slow pitch" softball at the JV level she could be advancing her other sport to higher level and pushing herself to new heights.

The high school program has been a recent D1 state champ, and is a very solid program year after year.

I would think that if you chose to not play softball your freshman year, but were good enough to play for the Varsity the next year that you would theoretically be welcomed ... but somehow .... not so sure. Thoughts?