college scouts; what do they take more stock in?

[llabtfos]

high school ball or watching asa/usssa ball in the summer (or season in which HS ball isn't taking place)

i do know one college coach but ive never asked him how much he cares or doesn't care about HS ball.

the reason i ask is -our town has a weak HS coach who everyone dislikes. despite most of the school's teams having success throughout the years and at least being close to or winning a conf. crown, his teams have never won conf. in the 12 seasons he has had the team. he started the program too, so he cant say its because he inherited a bad program.

wouldnt college coaches get more out of watching high level asa/usssa tournaments and i assume thats where they prefer to watch kids?

 

[Mark H]

High school is unimportant unless it points to a behavior problem. Google Cathi Aradi and read everything on her website. Buy the book if you are serious about finding a place for a kid.

I should add hs is very important in terms of grades. If a coach doesn't think a kid can stay eligible they won't bother watching them.

 

[llabtfos]

thanx for the response, my first one ;-)

 

[Mark H]

You are welcome. What part of the country?

 

[llabtfos]

mighty midwest

 

[RobD]

So unless you play in ASA or some other sanctioned league, college coaches or scouts wont bother watching you or have an interest in you? Why bother playing on a high school team then or even having high school softball????

 

[sluggers]

So unless you play in ASA or some other sanctioned league, college coaches or scouts wont bother watching you or have an interest in you?

That is correct. Just as your child had better play AAU basketball if he/she wants to play in college.

The reason is pretty simple: Playing college sports is about 100 times more competitive than HS sports. The only kids successful in college are those that are devoted to their chosen sport. A devoted kid will want to play softball 24x7, so she will find a way to play summer travel softball. If she doesn't play, then that indicates that she isn't that interested in the game.

Also, spend a weekend at a high level ASA tournament (like the Boulder Tourney), and you can see a 1000 high level kids. Spend a weekend watching HS ball, and you'll see maybe 5 high level kids.

Why bother playing on a high school team then or even having high school softball????

You can't be serious. The purpose of sports in high school is something other than getting college scholarships. HS softball may not be as competitive as ASA softball--but that doesn't mean it isn't fun. It is a great way to learn teamwork.

By the way, the college coaches are interested in kids who are all-state, big school division. Being all-state in the tiny school division for your state doesn't count for much.

 

[llabtfos]

at least HS ball gets you daily practices an lots of reps (repititons)

 

[Cannonball]

Both High School and Travel Ball have their place. No one would believe that high school ball is more important but it certainly is important. The degree is determined by many factors. For example, I have an friend who's daughter does well. However, her high school team plays a soft schedule. Soft as defined that 17 of their games were played by teams below .500. In our area, stats are kept at the St. Louis Post Dispatch or "sportsstats." When a college coach references those stats, and they do so often, they will easily be able to see how weak a schedule is. Therefore, those stats are meaningless. My dd's school plays a very tough schedule. To give you an example, she pitched against a team that came in second in our largest school classification. We routinely play them twice a year. They were beaten by another school twice in our area that my dd's team plays twice a year. Our conference routinely, and did again this year, has a team make it to sectionals or supersectionals. Only eleven teams on our schedule had a record below .500. Two of those opponents (4 games) were the bottom two teams in our conference. So when we get out of conference, we play the best around.

I've heard college coaches also allude to the fact that they want to know how players fare when they have to play the sport and maintain the grades. Let's face it, there are not too many pressing issues for most players during the summer other than play the game.

If you have a program and not just a coach and team, that also adds a lot of value. I can't speak for most people's experiences but when I coached baseball, I spent the majority of my time teaching the game. Bunt coverages, various defenses, defensive technique, hitting, pitching... We practiced 4 hours a day when we didn't have games. None of this practice involved people standing in lines waiting for their turn to hit or field a ball or... My dd's team is going to practice tonight. It will be our first practice since our season began. We play in 2 double header leagues and so play M,T,W,T and the typically have a tournament game on Friday. There has not been any time to practice. High school ball is good for those opportunities.

Having said all of this, this summer, my dd has played in front of more college coaches in one week that will see her play hs ball all of her high school career. Again, both have their place.

 

[Amy in AZ.]

Of course, it depends on what college you are looking at. Are you interested in DePaul or Eastern IL Univ.? They are 2 different D1 programs. Or is your DD interested in a private D3 program.

There are many, many softball teams that are really good and they aren't D1s. Those schools are more likely to be interested in "what you did in HS."

I coached at Springfield College in IL. I didn't have a large budget. The HS coaches were my life line.

There are community college teams in central IL., that girls are vying to find a spot on.
I read this weekend, where the one in Mattoon, has already signed 17 athletes and are wanting 2 more girls. I think HS softball is very important to that coach.