She is at an age where she needs to decide what her priorities are, and learn to live with the consequences of her choices. Big picture is this is not a big deal in terms of softball. If this happened to me, I think I would feel sad that my DD chose a football game rather than spending time with me going to practice, but I hope I would get over that disappointment and not give her a hard time about it.
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Greenmonsters
Wannabe Duck Boat Owner
This competing priorities thing is why some girls want to play DIII SB. If you don't allow your DD to make some decisions in HS, how do you expect her to make good decisions on her own during college (and life)? They need to learn how to manage their time and priorities. IMO, SB burnout usually means that SB wasn't as important to the girl as it was to the parents.
Thanks all! She's in 8th grade, not HS. Ends up they asked her to sing! 
Did a great job of it too!
And what I did discuss with her was that if there were ever an event that interfered with SB practice/games, she had to tell the coaches...not me. Gave her their contact info and everything. She's ready to practice on her own tonight (praying that she doesn't get what the boys have - nasty stomach flu).
Did a great job of it too! And what I did discuss with her was that if there were ever an event that interfered with SB practice/games, she had to tell the coaches...not me. Gave her their contact info and everything. She's ready to practice on her own tonight (praying that she doesn't get what the boys have - nasty stomach flu).
My HS age DD is dedicated to softball from Jan 1st to August 1st.
In the fall the TB team plays a 'light' schedule to allow the girls
to be teenagers. There are numerous opportunities that only present themselves
in HS and it would be a shame if she could not take advantage of these
'life experiences.' She misses softball practices as do others on her team
for school related activities and this leads her to be well-rounded. She is currently
tutoring at her HS as well which also looks very good on the college applications.
I do know plenty of softball parents that drive their DD 12 months a year with the assumption
that a D1 coach will knock on their front door armed with a 100% ride. Doing the 'other things'
builds character. Character combined with talent trumps talent every day. In her spare time,
she updates the colleges she is interested in with what she is doing both on and off the field.
If she is able to play SB in college and get $$ to boot, the great!! she is well aware that it is the
academics that will lead her to the promised land
In the fall the TB team plays a 'light' schedule to allow the girls
to be teenagers. There are numerous opportunities that only present themselves
in HS and it would be a shame if she could not take advantage of these
'life experiences.' She misses softball practices as do others on her team
for school related activities and this leads her to be well-rounded. She is currently
tutoring at her HS as well which also looks very good on the college applications.
I do know plenty of softball parents that drive their DD 12 months a year with the assumption
that a D1 coach will knock on their front door armed with a 100% ride. Doing the 'other things'
builds character. Character combined with talent trumps talent every day. In her spare time,
she updates the colleges she is interested in with what she is doing both on and off the field.
If she is able to play SB in college and get $$ to boot, the great!! she is well aware that it is the
academics that will lead her to the promised land
Thanks all! She's in 8th grade, not HS. Ends up they asked her to sing!
.
That's great! I'm glad it all worked out. All of the coaches I know really prefer to talk directly to the athletes - a few I know even dragged themselves into the 21st century and got a cell phone specifically for that purpose (now they complain about getting texts at midnight)! A nasty cold that wants to morph into pneumonia is going around here in Colorado - let's keep our flus and pneumonias separate!
I'd add that sometimes the girls are"burnt out" on mom or dad's overzealous attitude about softball. My DD walked away the fall of her sophmore year because she was tired of fighting with her dad about softball. She wanted a dad, not another coach, batting instructor, conditioning coach, or agent. After 3 months she decided to come back because she loves the game, but only after a serious heart-to-heart with dad about boundaries. My advice is to give them some leeway to enjoy being a teenager but expect them to give 100% when it's time for softball.
BTW DD's been offerred a spot to play at her top choice school and we visit 2nd choice tomorrow to talk with the coach. It all works out the way it's supposed to in the end.
Thanks all! She's in 8th grade, not HS. Ends up they asked her to sing!
It's great to have other interests. Music in particular is a potential lifetime activity. After she has hung up the cleats, she will have decades left to participate in music.
Good point.
When it comes to secondary sports, HS is the only opportunity they will have for this 'slice of life' My DD played
volley ball for the first time, made varsity and a new group of friends.
In our area the trend seems to be for the 16U and 18U teams to take on larger rosters. DD's team has 16 on it... with 2 additional players that fill in when necessary. Part of the large roster is to account for missed games / tournaments by 16 year old student athletes. Also at this age several of the girls on the team actually have jobs. Obviously the team rules state there are consequences if you do not show up for practice or a game, but the girls at least have options. When homecoming came around the 16 players go to about 13 different high schools so the homecoming events were spread out over 3 weekends. In the end we were able to get all the games in in the fall and were never shorthanded.
Now... once travel season begins in the summer it will be interesting to see how the playing time (or lack thereof) works out for some of them. The team doesn't have a bad one in the bunch. The girls are all competing for their spot each and every game. At first I was leery of the large roster, but now I find it just possibly might be the best thing at this age.
(it also allows the student athlete to also participate in other sports such as volleyball or basketball. Sometimes the change of pace is good for them).
Now... once travel season begins in the summer it will be interesting to see how the playing time (or lack thereof) works out for some of them. The team doesn't have a bad one in the bunch. The girls are all competing for their spot each and every game. At first I was leery of the large roster, but now I find it just possibly might be the best thing at this age.
(it also allows the student athlete to also participate in other sports such as volleyball or basketball. Sometimes the change of pace is good for them).
Greenmonsters
Wannabe Duck Boat Owner
The only way I see a 16-player roster working out is with an elite team playing only in showcases. Just don't think there's enough playing time to go around to keep anybody happy if its equally divided. And if its "performance-based" then you'll have probably half to three quarters thinking that they're getting shortchanged. Good luck, let us know how it works out.
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