Burnout is a very large problem. I see way to many kids playing 10 tournaments a summer season then going at all fall and then moving indoors all winter. This is happening at all age groups. One of the gold teams on the east coast plays more games than a professional baseball team would and the girls suffer for it.
This schedule effects the entire family unit. Try not to peak to early. Going to nationals as a 10U is pretty cool but it is hard to top it at 18U. If she is doing this year in and year out other interests will suffer, eventually she may decide that dance is more important than softball, or physics, or heaven help you; boys. She may want to develop friends that are not softball related or go into medicine. You have to be flexible and pay attention to her needs.
Softball is NOT the most important thing in the world. Remember that your prime directive is help your daughter grow into her own greatness, not yours.
I am proud of my daughters. One is just finishing college, played for two years but then it was time for her to move on. She learned a lot about herself, teamwork, discipline, desire and failure on the diamond. She pitched and learned how to work and apply herself and most importantly learned about risk/reward.
My younger daughter is a junior in high school and has wrapped up the #1 slot. She has worked all year toward that goal and perhaps since she started pitching as a 9 year old. She stuck with her lessons and is a substantially better pitcher than last year. She also is in the band and orchestra on two different instruments, in two choirs, student government, has a solo in the musical, varsity tennis and next year will be prom chair. Academically she is getting an A in physics (after starting out the year with a low 'C') and is carrying a 3.75. She realizes that it will be unlikely that she would be playing bassoon in the NY Philharmonic nor softball in the Olympics. However, that doesn't diminish her love of both.
I bring up all the above not so much to boost about her (maybe a little) but to encourage you to allow your daughters to explore and find their own paths. Growing up is a very messy thing and certain not a single linear line. Be careful that you don't find one tournament bleeding into the next and she can only tell what state she is in by the license plates on the cars in the parking lots.
We compare our girls to California players and in softball we come up short. Our girls typically play multiple sports and participate in HS life fully. If Cali girls are playing 120 games a year then they had better be going to Arizona and the WCWS. I have no idea what my daughters will do in life. Its unlikely to be softball but I owe the game a lot for what it has taught them and me about them.
Life is more of a decathlon; we're in it for the long haul.
