Once you hit the HS ages, it seems to matter less what age the players are if they have some solid years of travel ball under their belt. I'm carrying 3-4 kids on our 15U team that are still 14U eligible heading into next summer, and you probably couldn't pick them out by watching us, just based on either their size or their talent. Those kids should benefit tremendously in playing a tough schedule that I believe they can handle.
Most girls seem to see a significant growth spurt at 12 that make the 11 year olds seem small by comparison. That's not to say though, that these girls have yet acclimated to those physical changes over the course of one year. So it's deceiving in a sense. At 13, you'll notice that they've become more comfortable in their "new skin" and have adapted to their physical changes. I've also noticed that 13 yo's require more mental coaching than physical, and really blossom throughout that year as far as stepping up their game IQ, and start to carve out an identity of their own as a player. Looking back at 13U, I did carry 3-14's that year, and on any given weekend, 2 out of those 3 rarely started on the field. It was at that point that I started to notice how the age gap became less of an issue.
Up until around 14U, your younger teams are going to have to take their lumps and learn what they can. If you have the right approach, they will benefit regardless of your record. I always tell my girls (and it's true) that we learn more about ourselves and about the game when we lose than when we win. Work from the bottom up and address your most glaring weaknesses, until they are weaknesses no longer. That's how teams improve and players advance.
