I tend to have a different perspective on this. When DD was 10U, her team qualified for ASA nationals and finished in 2nd place. It was an incredible experience for the players and families involved. The players worked hard all summer to get there and their efforts paid off. These experiences may or may not happen again (e.g. girls drop out, or their team never gets back to the national championship game, etc). To say these tournaments are meaningless really does a disservice to the players. I'm sure these type of experiences have made my DD a better player and will stay with her throughout her softball "career".
My experience has been 'in the long run' these are meaningless. Not arguing that there is not personal achievement and pride for the team itself - I was talking externally beyond the team group.
And maybe it is a great personal experience for some players and was for your DD but the amount of players I have seen drop out from these teams has been ridiculous because a lot of it was done for the parents benefit over the kids. The team that was 2nd in ASA nationals and won a USSSA 10U-A tournament the year my DD was eligible for that age group (my DD was on a team that finished 5th that year I believe but Orlando is 3 hours away so it is local enough to make the trip) - less than four years on and only 3 of those girls play now (and at least one of them is clearly doing so only because her parents want her to). The best 2 players in 14-A quit last year along with most of their teammates - and they had dominated both within the state and had put in some strong national performances). And in terms of making high school teams or playing in college it also doesn't matter what you did in 12U and down.
And I am sure there are exceptions such as your experience. But I can't think of one locally at the moment.
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