My daughter is a 7th grader (2023.) One of the top pitchers and hitters in the area for her age, but not a phenom. She plays for a good club team that is starting to talk about "the future" -- college recruiting, showcases, etc. The players on her team by and large are interested in playing college softball someday. My initial thought is that it is pretty early for any of these girls to be thinking college and frankly too soon to know how good they will turn out as players anyway. But anyway....
My daughter is a good pitcher, but she is a truly gifted student. She takes her studies very seriously and is applying to a special high school next year where the average SAT score is a 1450. Right now she is most interested in engineering. She enjoys athletics, but she has no doubt that in both high school and college, her academics will be her top priority. I am certain that whatever course of study she chooses in college, it will be a demanding one.
Given all of this, I have always said that college athletics are unlikely to be a part of her future, and that I have no intention of spending our limited time and resources on activities that are geared towards college recruiting (e.g. playing on a club team that travels long distance for showcases.) However, I am starting to wonder if maybe I am being a little too shortsighted.
So my question: Is it actually possible that college softball could factor into the equation for my daughter? If she stays on her current academic trajectory, I know that she will easily meet the academic standards for any top tier school, but I also know that alone doesn't get you in to these schools. If it is possible for softball to crack the door open at a top tier academic institution, particularly one that can meet our financial need (which would be significant) that would change my opinion about her commitment to softball pretty dramatically. Are any intercollegiate athletes really students first, athletes second? Maybe D3? Even if it does look like a possibility for her, does she really need to think about this at all for the next few years?
Many thanks!
My daughter is a good pitcher, but she is a truly gifted student. She takes her studies very seriously and is applying to a special high school next year where the average SAT score is a 1450. Right now she is most interested in engineering. She enjoys athletics, but she has no doubt that in both high school and college, her academics will be her top priority. I am certain that whatever course of study she chooses in college, it will be a demanding one.
Given all of this, I have always said that college athletics are unlikely to be a part of her future, and that I have no intention of spending our limited time and resources on activities that are geared towards college recruiting (e.g. playing on a club team that travels long distance for showcases.) However, I am starting to wonder if maybe I am being a little too shortsighted.
So my question: Is it actually possible that college softball could factor into the equation for my daughter? If she stays on her current academic trajectory, I know that she will easily meet the academic standards for any top tier school, but I also know that alone doesn't get you in to these schools. If it is possible for softball to crack the door open at a top tier academic institution, particularly one that can meet our financial need (which would be significant) that would change my opinion about her commitment to softball pretty dramatically. Are any intercollegiate athletes really students first, athletes second? Maybe D3? Even if it does look like a possibility for her, does she really need to think about this at all for the next few years?
Many thanks!