Personal Observation of D3 Softball

[softball dad 6]

DD is lucky enough to play on a top 5 D3. I am also lucky enough to live in the same town as a top 5 D1 team and 15 minutes from a mid major D1 program. No girls on DDs team could start on the top 5 D1 team and only a couple could play a role on the team. At least 4 of the girls would be starting on the mid major team. There is a huge range of talent within each level. For DD she visited the school she committed to once and never talked to another coach after that. I still don't know what made fall in love with the school but she did and she has been incredibly happy and is getting a great education.

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[tim_s]

DD1 went to watch her future team on their home opener, and her take was "I feel like I could step in and play now" - but she was also impressed with the energy and the fact that most of the players all looked solid.....not just a handful of them, but all of them......basically a bunch of girls kind of like her

her incoming class is 11 deep now.......circumstances over the past few years left her future team with only 14 rostered, and 8 seniors......so it is a pretty cool opportunity to come in with a big group of girls, and looking at some of their resumes, a pretty talented group as well

we went down to a scholar dinner last week, at Fenway, and so far everything we see & hear just reaffirms that she made the right decision

 

[marriard]

So glad Vertigo started this thread.

This is also my DD's first year playing in college, at a D3. And I agree 100% - the level of play is much higher than I expected. Like every team would be a solid club from SoCal or the Midwest or the East Coast.

Which got me to thinking - who exactly plays D3?

So far, being brutally honest, I've come up with
- players who chose academics over higher level softball
- players who want to stay close to home
- players whose families could not afford or chose not to play high level TB, but who have a ton of talent
- players who opted out of D1/D2
- players who have one really great skill, but are mediocre or below average on other skills
- players who are long on skills but short on speed/athleticism
- players with a physical disadvantage, such as height

Any others?

That's a pretty wide range of players... And most of these more relate to players at D3 who have chosen to go to D3 schools with competitive programs. And can apply to NAIA and JUCO top programs as well in many cases.

- Disagree with the could not afford high level TB/ton of talent comment.
- One great skill I disagree with; depending on that skill that can get you a D1 shot.

I can name lots of other reasons - but I will say why my DD is there instead of taking one of the various D1 offers she had (she had a few Ivy and Patriot offers and some others, some with very decent athletic money)

- The school mattered to her most. This was the school that was right for her and her Education. She has 100% found her people.
- She didn't want to be 'owned' by a coach or rely on the scholarships to be at the college. She can step away tomorrow and it doesn't effect her being at the college in any way.
- Along the same lines - the education opportunities for study away, labs, classes, etc - come first. Half the team will NOT be on campus next semester - they will be spread out all over the world in various programs the school supports. Athletic dept has zero control over her educational choices in fact it is encouraged they take advantage of everything the school offers
- She didn't want the D1 time commit; not that the D3 competitive team commit is small because it isn't - it is every day and often multiple times a day - but it isn't EVERYTHING as it can be in D1.
- She wanted to pitch and also get a chance to bat/field and she wanted to PLAY
- She didn't want to be constantly looking over her shoulder at the next recruiting class.

I will also say that she was influenced by a number of D1 girls she knew who spent 2 years after their 4 years of playing finishing their degrees or even starting new degrees because they couldn't get their degrees finished in their 4 years while playing softball.

Interesting enough, DD has an extra year of eligibility and has talked about using it in grad school at a different college. It is a few years away, but some of the schools she is looking at are D1. We shall see.

Note: adding: there are also players at D3 programs who are just D3 players. On DD's team these are role players for the most part. On some teams that is what the team is (and they can be competitive with that in most games they will play)

At the bottom 1/3 of D3 none of these reasons really apply, I am not sure where they are getting their players. Some have not played before. Some are just there. The tail end of D3 is terrible (but then so is the tail end of D2 and even D1).

 

[murphdog]

DD1 went to watch her future team on their home opener, and her take was "I feel like I could step in and play now" - but she was also impressed with the energy and the fact that most of the players all looked solid.....not just a handful of them, but all of them......basically a bunch of girls kind of like her

her incoming class is 11 deep now.......circumstances over the past few years left her future team with only 14 rostered, and 8 seniors......so it is a pretty cool opportunity to come in with a big group of girls, and looking at some of their resumes, a pretty talented group as well

we went down to a scholar dinner last week, at Fenway, and so far everything we see & hear just reaffirms that she made the right decision

I hope that 11 includes pitching.
We played them Saturday (won one, lost one) and they really only have 1 pitcher. DD’s friend had another injury and she’s done. The freshman pitcher is out with I believe a concussion leaving just the one senior who is very good but pitching all the games is going to wear on her by the end of the season.
Definitely a solid team though.

 

[tim_s]

I hope that 11 includes pitching.
We played them Saturday (won one, lost one) and they really only have 1 pitcher. DD’s friend had another injury and she’s done. The freshman pitcher is out with I believe a concussion leaving just the one senior who is very good but pitching all the games is going to wear on her by the end of the season.
Definitely a solid team though.

i believe 2 (might be 3?) pitchers and 2 C - we met one of the pitchers last weekend, girl from MA....both C are seniors, too

i think a few of the girls she has coming in are some of the better recruits she's pulled so far

i just think the opportunity to come in as a group of 11 is unique, and a chance to have a really strong class/group on and off the field over the 4 years

 

[tim_s]

i believe 2 (might be 3?) pitchers and 2 C - we met one of the pitchers last weekend, girl from MA....both C are seniors, too

i think a few of the girls she has coming in are some of the better recruits she's pulled so far

i just think the opportunity to come in as a group of 11 is unique, and a chance to have a really strong class/group on and off the field over the 4 years

they had me at open bar & lobster rolls at fenway

 

[murphdog]

i believe 2 (might be 3?) pitchers and 2 C - we met one of the pitchers last weekend, girl from MA....both C are seniors, too

i think a few of the girls she has coming in are some of the better recruits she's pulled so far

i just think the opportunity to come in as a group of 11 is unique, and a chance to have a really strong class/group on and off the field over the 4 years

DD was part of a group of 11 also. By sophomore year they were down to 7 and now as a senior there are 4.

This year there are 11 freshmen and a junior transfer and a new coach so it’s been interesting watching who she puts where.
Definitely needed all of the new girls though. We only had 10 returners and only one was a pitcher.

DD is planning on a 5th year so maybe we’ll see you next season. We aren’t the same conference anymore but usually play most of the other city schools

 

[Eric F]

I was going to venture Lewis & Clark. Beautiful campus.

A couple of girls my oldest DD played with play there. Good players for sure.

Very beautiful. The L&C campus felt small, comfortable, and secluded, yet it's just a 10 minute drive to downtown Portland. From what I saw, my DD would have had to battle for a spot, but had a realistic chance to prove herself as undeniable. I really liked what I heard from coaches, admin, and student-athletes about the school's balance between athletics and academics. My DD, however, opted for a different path.

 

[Mike-Coach Q]

DD is lucky enough to play on a top 5 D3. I am also lucky enough to live in the same town as a top 5 D1 team and 15 minutes from a mid major D1 program. No girls on DDs team could start on the top 5 D1 team and only a couple could play a role on the team. At least 4 of the girls would be starting on the mid major team. There is a huge range of talent within each level. For DD she visited the school she committed to once and never talked to another coach after that. I still don't know what made fall in love with the school but she did and she has been incredibly happy and is getting a great education.

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[Rick M]

Great to hear about the terrific softball being played at D3. DD loves the game, but she’s on the small side so I’m guessing that’s going to be her path. I’ll just be happy if I get to watch her play for a few more years.


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