How Important is High School Softball

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.

Apr 8, 2013
4
0
I am pretty sure this has been discussed before but how important is playing high school softball to college coaches?

My daughter will be a sophomore next year and at this point doesn't want to play for the high school team. As a freshman she played on JV, starting every game at catcher. The JV was 15-2-1 but much of the competition was very weak and the level of play was not challenging. If she plays again she will still be on JV. If she doesn't play softball she would run cross country, do strength training, and work with her travel team and private coaches. Softball is a fall sport here but tryouts are in May with an optional but not optional summer preseason.

She hasn't made a final decision yet and is still weighing the pros and cons of playing high school softball. I am sure she would appreciate any additional perspectives.

Thanks-
 
Last edited:
Jul 19, 2014
2,390
48
Madison, WI
I have no idea, but people on this forum have said it isn't very important to the college coaches, assuming your DD is on a really good TB team.

HS softball is important to SOME girls for other reasons. Playing with their friends and classmates -- the girls they played rec ball with back in the day. Playing for the school. In Varsity, getting your name in the paper if you do really well.

A lot of it depends on other things. If HS softball interferes with summer TB, or if your DD really loves cross country, those could be reasons not to play.
 
Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
It is of no consequence. It is only a footnote on her softball resume. She will get much more out of x-country and strength training. I would also focus on agility as part of her regimen.
 
Last edited:
Jun 27, 2011
5,089
0
North Carolina
If this were my decision, the effect it has on recruiting would not be a factor. As a general rule, college coaches don't care about HS ball.

My DD played on a similar (even more dominant) JV team as a freshman. She made the best of it, but now way she would've done it as a sophomore. Been there, not going back.

I assume that the varsity is stacked if she's a lock for JV next season? I know 3-4 local players who played JV as sophomores who might be all-conference this year, so doesn't mean you're not good, but JV is such as wasteland for players who could start at most varsity teams.

One thing to consider is the fact that HS ball might be really fun for her as a junior/senior, and not playing as a sophomore might jeopardize her opportunity.
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,131
113
Dallas, Texas
One problem in discussing HS softball is simply geography. There are people who post here from SoCal and Florida, and other people who post here are from rural Arkansas. HS softball can vary significantly.

Someone in Fulton County Arkansas might go to a HS softball game and think, "This is terrible." Someone in Orange County, California watching Norco play might think differently.

Playing well in HS softball will not necessarily help a kid, but *NOT* playing HS softball would be considered a red flag for some college coaches. IMHO, it suggests a lack of maturity, an inability to work within a group, and a lack of passion for the game.

The same problems that a kid faces in HS exist in college softball. E.g., politics is a fact of life...whether it is HS softball, college softball, working with customers, or working in a business. A child has to learn to deal with politics, or accept that her genius will never be recognized.

"Bad coaches" exist in college softball. Some college coaches are not nice people. Even if a kid loves the head coach, there will almost certainly be an AC that she doesn't mesh with. A player needs to learn how to work with difficult coaches.

Finally, it sounds like the kid doesn't care that much for the sport. I have real trouble imagining a player with a real passion for softball passing up an opportunity to play.
 
Last edited:

marriard

Not lost - just no idea where I am
Oct 2, 2011
4,312
113
Florida
In my experience it has absolutely no effect as long as your DD has a very clear answer on why she didn't play if she is asked. And you should expect to be asked.

As Sluggers says above, if your answer why you didn't play reflects any of the concerns above, you can effect a coaches view of you.
 

Strike2

Allergic to BS
Nov 14, 2014
2,042
113
The same problems that a kid faces in HS exist in college softball. E.g., politics is a fact of life...whether it is HS softball, college softball, working with customers, or working in a business. A child has to learn to deal with politics, or accept that her genius will never be recognized.

Because THIS deserves to be repeated...
 

obbay

Banned
Aug 21, 2008
2,199
0
Boston, MA
I have asked college coaches (DI, II and III) I have met if playing HS ball matters to them. they all said it doesn't matter. the reason a player doesn't play might matter though.
 

TMD

Feb 18, 2016
433
43
Agree with all of the above. In the big picture of college recruiting, HS ball matters not at all. To our daughters, however, it is a great opportunity to play with school friends, play against travel ball teammates who go to other schools, and try (try!) to keep sharp for the travel season that will start the day HS ball ends.
 
Last edited:
Jun 27, 2011
5,089
0
North Carolina
Had a D-I commit on DD's team quit the team mid-season this year. I'm curious to know if her college coach asked why. I assume that conversation came up. It was not a real good reason, IMO. Would have been better not to play at all than start and quit.
 

Latest posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
42,809
Messages
678,966
Members
21,423
Latest member
Wes_K
Top