New Team determining what tournaments to attend. Any Advice?

[Wreckinized]

Hello, my name is Randy.Brand new to coaching travel ball.Our team is new also,just put together in august of '15. We are a 16u team.My question is: I'm trying to determin what tournaments to attend for this upcoming summer. Any advice is welcomed in this discussion.Thank you and looking forward to reading all comments.

 

[wvanalmsick]

Welcome to this crazy world of fastpitch.

1. At what level do you think your girls are at right now? You have to be brutally honest.

2. What are the aspirations of the girls concerning college ball? They are starting late on this process but there is still time.

3. Now, put #1 & #2 together and that will be the measuring stick.

4. Pick tournaments that will challenge the girls to improve on their skill set.

The forum will need to know the answers to #1 & #2 before we can help you find tournaments that will be a good fit for your team.

 

[Wreckinized]

After putting our team together,I scrimmaged 2 teams(won both),so i took the team down to Columbus(berliner park) for a 1 day tournament in October. Basically,to let the team bond,stay in hotel and get the parents together. Anyway's,played some serious,talented teams,got beat up pretty good but came back in elimination game and lost by 1.Truthfully,a good showing for never playing together. My coaching staff was approached afterwards about 4 of our teammates from area college.That's my goal...to get as many girl's looked at.

 

[KillingMeSmalls]

Hello, my name is Randy.Brand new to coaching travel ball.Our team is new also,just put together in august of '15. We are a 16u team.My question is: I'm trying to determine what tournaments to attend for this upcoming summer. Any advice is welcomed in this discussion.Thank you and looking forward to reading all comments.

I'm not sure where you are located, but as a new team I would highly recommend for you to start the season off at Bat Wars. It is usually the first weekend in June. It would conflict with any players you had playing in the State High School finals. The best part of this tournament is that you are guaranteed seven games. This would be a great opportunity for your players to get a lot of games and experience at the start of the season. Better hurry though as it generally fills up fast. http://www.fastpitchshowdowns.com/capital-city-showdown-page

 

[wvanalmsick]

Here are my suggestions (trying to stay in the northern part of Ohio):

CAPITOL CITY 7 GAME GUARANTEE SHOWDOWN, Jun 3-6, Columbus.
OUTLAWS SUMMER SHOWCASE & CAMP, Jun 10-12, North Ridgeville.
Sheer Madness ASA/USA National Qualifier and College Showcase, Jun 17-19, North Ridgeville.
ASA State Tournament, Jun 24-26 at Findlay.
Fireworks Frenzy Showcase, Jul 1-3, Strongsville.
Buckeye Recruitfest at Berliner Park, Columbus July 8-10.

North American All Sanctioned World Series, Jul 15-17, Columbus.
or
GAPSS - Great American Premier Softball Showcase, Jul 15-17, Powell, OH


But more important than getting them seen at tournaments, your girls need to be emailing colleges of their interest and they need to attend any camps that those colleges are running. They will get more quality exposure at the camps.

Here are a few camps/clinics around Sandusky:

Ohio Northern Camp: http://www.onusports.com/athletics/camps_clinics/softball/ONU_SOFTBALL_TEAM_DAY.docx
Karen Linder Clinics: https://www.facebook.com/Up-To-Bat-...ng-Facility-218929214839648/events?key=events
Ohio Wesleyan Camps: http://www.thesoftballzone.com/showthread.php?55207-Ohio-Wesleyan-Softball-Clinics-1-30-amp-2-6
Heidelberg Camp: http://www.heidelbergsoftballcamps.com/
Tiffin (this had a closing date of 20 Jan but I would give them a call): http://www.gotiffindragons.com/d/2015-16/softball/Spring Hitting League 2016 (2).pdf
NFCA Recruiting Camp, July 8, Columbus. https://nfca.org/index.php?option=com_zoo&task=item&item_id=602&Itemid=181

Best of luck this year.

 

[Wreckinized]

Thank you so much!!

 

[Static_97_North]

Everybody wants to win but most importantly if the girls want to play at the next level they need as many looks as possible. They must email all the college coaches they are interested in with their profile and scheduled tournaments with dates, times and field numbers. Camps, camps and camps will get them looks and on radars. If the college coach is interested they will come. If you are playing the better teams they will also get more looks as those teams have college coaches following them as well. The girls and parents have to do their job though, not only on the field but at home sending letters and emails. Short video clips are a bonus as well. You want to keep these to 2 or 3 minutes long at best.