18U Balancing Act, Travel and Exposure

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How do the other 18 U and 16 U Showcase teams balance out their schedule between seeking exposure and traveling? I know some of our parents/players don't want to travel every weekend or play every weekend. But at the same time its important to hit the right tournaments to make sure you're players get exposure. How do you balance it? What's the most amount of weeks that your team will travel out of town in a row? How many is too many, how many is good?

Thanks in advance, its tough balancing out a schedule. ;&

 

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I know some of our parents/players don't want to travel every weekend or play every weekend.

They are on the wrong team. If your team goal is primarily exposure, then you have to go to the tournaments that will provide that exposure, period.

If they don't want to travel, then the family is on the wrong type of team.

 

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I agree. Schedule a tournament every weekend and when it rains one out... that 's your weekend off !!!

 

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The answer is to have a team full of families at 18u & 16u who are all on the same page, especially at 16u. Either you have a showcase team, or you don't. If you have a mix, the families on the "high school & done" page might not be too keen on so much travel. But try telling the kids who want the exposure that you're not applying to Stingrays or Compuware (or any high-profile showcase) because some of the other families want a weekend off... good luck with that! Nip it in the bud... be sure all the kids (families) you recruit are in it for the same reason.

 

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Agree ... had this issue last year ... parents and kids said they wanted exposure, but then didn't want to travel anywhere. Went in this year making sure everyone was on the same page ...

 

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I think 18u is a very difficult age group to do this with. From the time tryouts take place until the season begins these young ladies lives are changing dramatically. Their priorities change, the choices that they thought were made are undone and others put in place.

 

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Everything previously stated is true.

At try-outs, make sure everyone knows your intentions before they commit to your team. This applies to all levels of play.

16U is the division to seriously hit the exposure tournaments. A lot of colleges are looking for recruits for 2-3 years down the road.

Many 18U players are either already committed, or they realize that high school is probably the last scholastic games they'll play.

As with many situations in life - Communication is the key.

 

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Agree ... 18-U is a tough age in this regard ... and priorities and choices can definitely change at the 16-U level as well ... I think the best one can do is at least go into everything on the same page ...

 

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Communication of goals and expectations is truly the key.

 

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Funny.

I was just having this discussion with a friend of mine. My daughter is a 98 12U girl and we are already starting to take note of who is actually doing exposure and who is doing 16U travel. To me there is a big difference.

I have already told my daughters that they need to make up there minds by the time they hit 16U.

To me 16U exposure means you are committed to softball in the Fall and Summer. So no HS Fall sports. And your goal is to play in college. 16U travel means you are playing with a bunch of your HS buddies and enjoying life..........

I think you need to really check out what the rest of the parents are thinking. And their commitment level.

 

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Remember to have your players reachout to the coaches now, start the dialogue as early as possible. When you go to a showcase there are plenty of players to look at so you want to make sure the coaches know you are there ahead of time. This goes for non-showcase events as well, tell the coaches where you are and give them the opportunity to come out and watch them play.

 

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We have a chicken or an egg problem here in Western Pa concerning showcases. We have to have 'good' teams to get the coaches to come to the showcases and we have to have coaches to make the trip worthwhile for the good teams. We have and are attempting to put together showcases that are worthwhile for both the teams and the coaches that don't involve 5 hours of travel and 4 nights in a hotel. We do have a tremendous number of smaller schools in the region and since most players will attend regional schools please don't overlook the local tournaments just to play on field #78 at 6:00PM in Pennsbury.

It is clearly an uphill battle. Any advice on how to make a Western PA Tournament a true showcase would certainly be welcomed by the TD's.

 

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It is clearly an uphill battle. Any advice on how to make a Western PA Tournament a true showcase would certainly be welcomed by the TD's.

There is truth in the fact that the coaches will follow the stud teams a bit more, but that is not a deal breaker for others. A coach/scout is more likely to go watch a player that has expressed interest in their school than to go cold calling at tournaments. Now if you can put the two together; 1) get the girls to make contact with the schools and send them your schedule and their profiles, 2) attend a tournament with other quality (they do not have to be studs) teams to make it worth the trip. Now you are in business unless you are chasing a high profile DI school then you better get hooked up with a stud team to get the exposure you'll need. JMHO

 

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Good advice from those that have been there, If your area dosent have what you need to get your kids seen then you have to travel. Having a life or preparing to play ball in college will no doubt become a personal choice.

We are planning for the first time since 12u to take a vacation over the holidays, tournaments were always our vacation it seems and since mine was 11 years old life revolved around softball. But that was her choice. Now with the monkey off her back she can have the life you spoke of.

I like what a few posters said about team commitment, thats dead on, a few that have signed and no longer want to travel can throw a huge wrench into your season, best to know before hand everyones intentions.

Tim

 

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One of the reason we don't start the 18u div at the Jamboree until Saturday now is due to allot of the Girls holding job and had trouble making Friday night games

 

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With the original poster now in the position of trying to balance things for next summer, if the schedule wasn't laid out with specificity in the fall, then I think I would lean toward a more demanding schedule and let everyone know now, and then see how much push back you get. Maybe travel for a showcase about every other weekend and try to stay local every other weekend, something like that. One key is to hit only showcases when you do travel. No point in wasting a weekend of travel expenses on a non-showcase.

But like everyone else above said, the key to the balance is everyone being on the same page, which requires specific communication up front. I mean really, really specific. Just saying we are going to do Stingrays, Lasers, ASA qualifiers, etc., isn't enough. You have to allow for curve balls that will be thrown at you during the year. I did the whole thing long enough to guarantee that something will arise each year to potentially alter the best-laid plans.

If I were starting a team in the fall (or continuing one) and it were a showcase 16-U or 18-U team, I would not only state the tournaments we plan to play, but also the nature of the team and the general expectations. I would give them the tournaments we plan to play (assuming we are accepted to each), the alternate plans if we're not accepted to various tournaments, and then the caveat that opportunities might arise that are unforseen and we will probably take advantage of them. So, the message would be that this is a showcase team and we are definitely going to do some things and might do these extra things if we are permitted, so don't join the team if you're not up for it. And our plans could change at any time based on opportunities that arise and we will likely take advantage of those opportunities, based upon a decision of the coaching staff on whether the opportunities are worth pursuing. Please understand before accepting a roster spot that there will be no vote or even any input solicited on these decisions.

All of that might leave me without a team in Ohio or western PA, but if I do have a team, we're on the same page.