As a freshman, my DD was the best player on the varsity team, and was one of just 4 girls on the team that had any TB experience. Many of her teammates had only played HS ball. That year, they equaled the school's best record in league play in over 10 years...4-10. This included a 28-0 loss to a team stacked deep with talented TB players. Despite the tremendously mediocre level of talent of the team, my DD had fun, and made some good friends among her teammates. For the first time since she was in 10u rec ball, she got to see softball teammates in the halls and classrooms of her school. The following fall, she got burned out with the grind and pressure of high-level TB, and resigned from her team. What kept her softball fire lit was the thought of returning to the fun of her HS team, and the hope that they might be a little better next year. Yes, the talent level is worse than TB. Yes, the coaching is worse than TB. But that's not all there is to this game.