Ohio Pride 18u Private Tryouts
The Ohio Pride (Kent) 18u Travel Softball Team is a highly competitive softball team that is generally made up of players from Summit, Stark, Medina, Portage, Lake, and Geauga Counties. The Ohio Pride (Kent) 18u Travel softball team generally plays in 6-7 showcase tournaments, with no more than 3 tournaments being overnight tournaments. (Players still seem to enjoy the "road trips"). This past year?s schedule included The Capital City Showdown - Bat Wars June 6-8, The Ohio Magic ENQ tournament in Boardman June 13-15, The Akron Racers Summer Slam Tournament June 20-22, The Ohio ASA 18u State Championships in Zanesville June 27-29, The "Battle of the Burgh" Tournament in Pittsburgh July 4-6, The Cinderella Classic tournament in North Ridgeville July 11-13, and the Fastpitch Classic in Toledo July 18-20. I'd expect a similar schedule for next summer. We return 8 players for next year's, so we have a really strong nucleus of players returning. We play a competitive schedule, and we take Pride in our ability to play late into Sundays. However, if you are looking for a team that is going to hop on a plane to fly out west to Colorado or Arizona to play in tournaments, stop reading this right now, because this team is not for you. If it's not drive-able, we are not likely going there.
To fund our team we take our total estimated team costs and divide by the number of players on the team. We don't fundraise, we write checks. Players are free to fundraise if they'd like to. Players can usually make payments if they need to. By the time you add up tournaments, insurance, sanction fees, and minor stuff like softballs, it costs a player approximately $290 to play during summer, plus the cost of uniforms (two panted uniforms (approximately $180 if you don't already have them), which you keep. (Uniforms have lasted players three years, so it's a one-time investment, and they are really nice). Not one dime collected goes to the coaches. Coaches pay our own meal and travel expenses just like the players do. We don't buy matching bat bags, helmets, etc. (And we don't do trading pins either!). But it's still $470 to play for a summer, plus travel, and you keep your uniforms, so it's not cheap.
Once the team is set, we have a meeting to decide which tournaments to play in, how much we are willing to spend, etc. The Ohio Pride 18u team usually plays in the Spano Sunday Indoor League during the winter months (Playing in Spano usually costs players around $80-$100). I think playing indoor is invaluable. We will also practice through the winter at a cost of $70/per player for 8-10 practices. We use the indoor season to get ready for the spring softball season; we use the summer season to get ready for college softball, for those who choose to play at the next level. Every senior from last year's team is playing college ball next year. However, I don't care if players plan to play in college or not. I care that they want to excel. We practice once a week, usually on Wednesday nights from 7-9 PM during summer, and either Wednesday or Thursday nights from 7-9 PM during the winter months. Summer practices are at Green High School's Varsity Softball field, (but I'm in the process of trying to buy my own field) winter practices are generally held at available indoor facilities in the greater Akron area. Practices are hard work and timed to the minute. At 18u, players have many conflicts, their time is valuable, and I don't waste any. I don't waste my time either. Players that want or need help outside of practice get it. Outworking your opponent is a life skill that translates from the ball field to the business world well.
Open tryouts are very rare as our team generally fills by word of mouth. If we do have tryouts, they are generally held in private, (or at most a couple girls at a time), are usually scheduled during evenings throughout the work week or early on the weekends, and are scheduled on a first come, first serve basis until the team fills. Scheduling in this manner usually allows players to attend other tryouts on the weekend to allow them to find that "perfect fit". There is NO PRESSURE to join my team. With success comes increased interest, so this team always fills quickly.
If this sounds like a team you'd be interested in, AND you are a competitive player who wants to continue to develop your softball skills, please feel free to call or email to the contact information noted below.
Best regards,
Ray Kent
Manager/Head Coach - Ohio Pride 18u
330-896-6342 Home
440-725-8011 Cell
440-392-7152 Work
rgknet@aol.com Home email
Ray_Kent@steris.com Work email
The Ohio Pride (Kent) 18u Travel Softball Team is a highly competitive softball team that is generally made up of players from Summit, Stark, Medina, Portage, Lake, and Geauga Counties. The Ohio Pride (Kent) 18u Travel softball team generally plays in 6-7 showcase tournaments, with no more than 3 tournaments being overnight tournaments. (Players still seem to enjoy the "road trips"). This past year?s schedule included The Capital City Showdown - Bat Wars June 6-8, The Ohio Magic ENQ tournament in Boardman June 13-15, The Akron Racers Summer Slam Tournament June 20-22, The Ohio ASA 18u State Championships in Zanesville June 27-29, The "Battle of the Burgh" Tournament in Pittsburgh July 4-6, The Cinderella Classic tournament in North Ridgeville July 11-13, and the Fastpitch Classic in Toledo July 18-20. I'd expect a similar schedule for next summer. We return 8 players for next year's, so we have a really strong nucleus of players returning. We play a competitive schedule, and we take Pride in our ability to play late into Sundays. However, if you are looking for a team that is going to hop on a plane to fly out west to Colorado or Arizona to play in tournaments, stop reading this right now, because this team is not for you. If it's not drive-able, we are not likely going there.
To fund our team we take our total estimated team costs and divide by the number of players on the team. We don't fundraise, we write checks. Players are free to fundraise if they'd like to. Players can usually make payments if they need to. By the time you add up tournaments, insurance, sanction fees, and minor stuff like softballs, it costs a player approximately $290 to play during summer, plus the cost of uniforms (two panted uniforms (approximately $180 if you don't already have them), which you keep. (Uniforms have lasted players three years, so it's a one-time investment, and they are really nice). Not one dime collected goes to the coaches. Coaches pay our own meal and travel expenses just like the players do. We don't buy matching bat bags, helmets, etc. (And we don't do trading pins either!). But it's still $470 to play for a summer, plus travel, and you keep your uniforms, so it's not cheap.
Once the team is set, we have a meeting to decide which tournaments to play in, how much we are willing to spend, etc. The Ohio Pride 18u team usually plays in the Spano Sunday Indoor League during the winter months (Playing in Spano usually costs players around $80-$100). I think playing indoor is invaluable. We will also practice through the winter at a cost of $70/per player for 8-10 practices. We use the indoor season to get ready for the spring softball season; we use the summer season to get ready for college softball, for those who choose to play at the next level. Every senior from last year's team is playing college ball next year. However, I don't care if players plan to play in college or not. I care that they want to excel. We practice once a week, usually on Wednesday nights from 7-9 PM during summer, and either Wednesday or Thursday nights from 7-9 PM during the winter months. Summer practices are at Green High School's Varsity Softball field, (but I'm in the process of trying to buy my own field) winter practices are generally held at available indoor facilities in the greater Akron area. Practices are hard work and timed to the minute. At 18u, players have many conflicts, their time is valuable, and I don't waste any. I don't waste my time either. Players that want or need help outside of practice get it. Outworking your opponent is a life skill that translates from the ball field to the business world well.
Open tryouts are very rare as our team generally fills by word of mouth. If we do have tryouts, they are generally held in private, (or at most a couple girls at a time), are usually scheduled during evenings throughout the work week or early on the weekends, and are scheduled on a first come, first serve basis until the team fills. Scheduling in this manner usually allows players to attend other tryouts on the weekend to allow them to find that "perfect fit". There is NO PRESSURE to join my team. With success comes increased interest, so this team always fills quickly.
If this sounds like a team you'd be interested in, AND you are a competitive player who wants to continue to develop your softball skills, please feel free to call or email to the contact information noted below.
Best regards,
Ray Kent
Manager/Head Coach - Ohio Pride 18u
330-896-6342 Home
440-725-8011 Cell
440-392-7152 Work
rgknet@aol.com Home email
Ray_Kent@steris.com Work email
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