It is possible?

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A friend sent me this question. Has it been done?

Is it possible or has it ever been done that a high
school senior has gotten a scholarship to a college playing softball and
never played high school ball (only travel ball)?

 

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Happens all the time in California.

I have also heard of it happening in Ohio. However I do not know anyone personally from Ohio who has done it. Surely someone in the vast OFC universe will have a name.

 

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I think any respectable college coach would ask why she didn't play high school ball, provided there was a program available - and that is key. A coach is going to listen VERY carefully to that answer, because it could be a big red flag. IMO, it's a very big mistake to pass up high school ball - especially for silly reasons like 1) It's not competitive enough 2) The coach is clueless 3) My team mates are not very talented. Etc. Etc.

College coaches want athletes, but there's a lot more to it than that. College ball and college life is TOUGH. Coaches want kids who have a proven track record of "toughing it out" in tough situations. Quitting your high school team because you THINK you got a raw deal may have future implications. Gutting out a tough situation shows a LOT more intestinal fortitude. Quitting is the easy way out - at least in the short run. But taking the easy road may just come back around to bite you in the a** when you least expect it.

Look past your nose when making a decision on high school ball.

 

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Sammy, I tend to agree with you if the situation is one where the player just did not like her HS team or the coaches etc....

However, if a player is home schooled or perhaps thier HS does not offer softball I see no reason why a college coach would not still be interested. I have talked to many college coaches (both when my DD was on recruiting trips and after) and a number of them told me that they tend to pay more attention to what type of travelball team a player played on and what type of schedule they played. In some cases the HS was not a deciding factor. I am a big fan of players playing for thier local HS and enjoying that experience. In the same respect I am sure that there are also coaches who would put more weight on a high school career especially if the team is a perenial power and the the player was a significant contributor.

I have no doubt that if a player is home schooled and blistered the ACT and SAT tests and she can throw 62 mph with awesome movement while at the same time crushing everything that is pitched her way, they would not even give a second thought to the fact that they did not play HS ball.

 

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No program available; home schooled are valid answers. Actually, I have a problem with public schools not letting home-schooled athletes play in their school district. I'm sure you could find some pretty stellar home-schooled college players, too. I'm betting the odds are stacked against the kid who CHOOSES not to play, versus one who has no options to play. A BIG difference.

In a recruiting interview, the coach may not even bring up your summer travel ball team. He/she doesn't need to - they watched you play all summer, and that's why you're sitting in the chair by their desk. However, college coaches rarely, if ever, get to see your high school games, because that's when the college season is - like right now. They'll ask you in those "Monday phone calls" how your high school season is going. Notice - an open ended question.

Some kids and parents think it's weird that the coach "didn't even talk about softball that much". There's a reason. They already KNOW how good of an athlete you are. They want to find out if your head is screwed on straight. Signing a recruit has a degree of risk, and the wise college coaches are very good at minimizing that risk.

To answer the question - looking at various college rosters on their internet sites may give a clue. But one thing that may be misleading is I'm not sure all JC transfers list their high schools.

 

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Johnnies- forgive me if I take this thread into a different direction. Sammy and Wave, would it be ideal for a girl to play on a high school team was so weak that said player was unable to play at her capable level? She had to scale back on all her throws and etc.. A woman among little girls. Just curious what each of your responses are. Thanks.

 

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Hmmm, I thought this thread was going to be about the Rise Ball.

 

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My niece who played (and started) 4 years for Arkansas never played high school ball. As the one person commented though, she lived on the West Coast.

 

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Hmmm, I thought this thread was going to be about the Rise Ball.

Riseball > Physics

 

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One of my home school girls played her senior year at her local school at Kings High School and went on to play at Blufton...not sure of the spelling.

One of my boys never played high school ball at all and played at Miami, Middletown.

Straight A kids well adjusted, good families both are now happily married and we made it to one of the weddings.

Funny thing about it, I could never pick the home school kids out when they were in a crowd with public school kids.

I lost track of the other three kids.

Howard

 

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yes

 

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Johnnies- forgive me if I take this thread into a different direction. ? Sammy and Wave, would it be ideal for a girl to play on a high school team was so weak that said player was unable to play at her capable level? ?She had to scale back on all her throws and etc.. ?A woman among little girls. Just curious what each of your responses are. ?Thanks.

No reason to ask for forgiveness. Your contributions here are respected and appreciated. This is a legit question by my friend. My response...

That is a good question and I am going to post this on OFC to see what the people there have to say. I am sure we will get some good responses on both sides of the question.

My opinion is this. It is very possible.

College coaches see the players during the summer not during the HS season since their season is in the spring, the same time as HS season. College coaches visit high profile tournaments during the summer to scout for prospective players for their programs. If I were a college coach and I saw a player that was very talented and would help my program, the fact that she did not play HS softball and concentrated on her lessons, practices or playing travel ball during that time would not have an impact on my decision. If I want that player - it would absolutely not be a factor. Keep in mind that this is just my opinion. Like I said, I am going to post this on OFC to get a variety of opinions. It is always good to have several different persepectives.

 

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If their good! Their Good! I dont think its going to matter....IMO ;D

 

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Does anyone know of a player in Ohio that played softball in College but not HS softball?