Is H.S. ball worth the time?

Westwind said:

For whatever it’s worth, in some ways college softball is a lot more like high school softball than travel ball. I think that people expect it will be Tavel Ball+ and then are not prepared for what happens next. Experiences will vary, just like they do in high school. That’s all I’m going to say about that.

Not everyone will agree with this of course.

Click to expand...

Westwind said:

For whatever it’s worth, in some ways college softball is a lot more like high school softball than travel ball. I think that people expect it will be Tavel Ball+ and then are not prepared for what happens next. Experiences will vary, just like they do in high school. That’s all I’m going to say about that.

Not everyone will agree with this of course.

Click to expand...

obbay said:

True. But I expect a big difference from our HS program is that no matter what you experience on a college team, i imagine everyone on that team has picked softball as their #1 sport, if they dont just plain love the game outright. A big thing DD learned from this HS team is the importance of “team” .

As far as drama goes, you dont have to look any further than the Fagan-Walton feud to see it can happen at all levels.

Click to expand...

GunnerShotgun said:

I agree with this and have tried to explain this to others. If you go out and watch colleges play the quality is just north of 5A (or 4A) High School softball. Sure at the highest end of D1 those teams are next level softball but for everything else it's a mixed bag.

A lot of people see the college world series on ESPN every year and think all colleges play at that level. It's not even close.

Click to expand...

Cannonball said:

I take offense at the "fluffy accolades" comment since that is what you stated after I posted about my dd. If you think All-State 1st Team if "fluffy" when we only had 2 classes at that time, you are mistaken. If you think that 1st Team All Area for 4 straight years in an area comprised of 3.3 million people is "fluffy" then you are mistaken. While my dd never played for accolades, she busted her rear more than any player I've coached in 31 years of coaching. She is THE toughest player I have ever coached. She doesn't deserve to have someone pass judgement on her achievements and call them "fluffy."

Click to expand...

FP26 said:

DD's high school season, and therefore career are now over. All that is left is the sport's banquet. So once it came to an end I asked her if it was all worth it. Here is some history.

Freshman -- she was the only freshman starting on a team that included 8 travel ball players. She started in right field and did get a few opportunities in the circle. The team qualified for districts. In all, it was a successful season with the exception of some player and parent created drama. Not over the top, but there was some.
Sophomore -- she started the year as the #2 pitcher behind the senior #1. Within 8 games she proved to be more consistent in the circle and took over for the rest of the year. 3 of the travel ball players graduated, so we were down to 5 with any real experience. Personally DD had an outstanding season. But the drama that began her freshman year continued and seemed to multiply. By the end of her sophomore year, she had questions about returning for her junior year.
Junior -- her desire to walk away lasted approximately 2 weeks. Then she decided she would continue. It was down to her and one other travel ball player. The rest of the team was very young, and VERY inexperienced. To make matters worse, DD developed shoulder issues and missed nearly half of the season. The level of drama was more than I had ever seen with any other program ever. By the end of the year, DD was absolutely positive she would not play high school ball again.
Senior -- this time she seemed content about not playing, but once the travel ball season ended in September, she started talking about softball and how she didn't want to miss her senior year. We talked about all the drama and she agreed, but kept saying "it's my senior year". This year she was the only travel ball player on the team, and it showed on the field. The drama wasn't quite as bad this year, but was still there.

So after all of this, DD has no regrets about playing. She does say that if she knew then what she knows now, she may not have ever started high school softball to begin with. But once she got involved, it was inevitable that she would play all four years. She felt that she owed it to the coaches and the other players to continue. She didn't want to let them down. Overall, even though there were a ton of negatives, she is considering it a rewarding experience. As a parent, it was painful to watch sometimes, but I am very proud of how she handled herself throughout all of it. It was a learning experience both on and off the field. I apologize for the long post, but you are right when you say that each person's experience is different. There were several points throughout this process that I was hoping quietly that she would walk away from high school ball and just stick with travel ball. But at the end of the day, I am glad she stuck with it. The lessons she learned by doing so, will be valuable the rest of her life.

Click to expand...

marriard said:

So to your specific questions:
College coaches at all levels don't care about high school achievements UNLESS they are at the highest level in the state. i.e. several prospective coaches watched my DD play in our district and state finals this season because it was streamed and they could. My DD's team is not without drama - but the team is full of very, very talented travel players. I am sorry your HS softball sucks.

However you got a lot of advice and answers to questions you SHOULD be asking - which you are just willfully ignoring from people who have been there multiple times with their DD's, their teams and lots of players. We see red flags because we see this all the time - your obsession with D1 is disturbing, your thought that D1 or even a scholarship is the end-goal is not a good way of thinking about it, your reliance on a coach to get your through a plan, your comments on how it has been presented to you... I know it is very familiar to me and I suspect it is for others as well. And your dismissal of others achievements at great and even not great high school programs is unfair and insulting to those who have had the fortune and opportunity to achieve.

A lot of college sports is sold on "*school pride*, fluffy accolades, camaraderie, etc" and it is in many ways closer to a high school team environment than travel. As a player you have to be prepared for that or you will get chewed up and spat out. The college coach may not care about your DD's high school experience, but there are still things your DD could possibly learn even in a poor environment. It isn't just skills and talent that makes a player in college but also the personality and ability to handle situations you cannot avoid.

There is good advice in this thread and others like it. I hope you take it and opens your mind a little about what the real goal of playing sports is. I hope your DD is awesome and reaches all her goals. It is worth stepping back and assessing objectively some of the red flags people have raised and keeping your eyes open as your DD's journey moves along.

Click to expand...