Travel Teams

[YC Sports Look]

What are the travel teams the kids in the BRD district play for?
Since the Legends became a southside team I have heard of several teams that have come and gone but no teams playing the ASA format mostly the USSSA and PONY stuff

[CoachBell]

Legends still have several players on BRD - have several
Vipers have a couple
Peninsula Stars have some
Yorktown Revolution Have a good number of players
Williamsburg Starz have em
Richmond Rampage
Richmond Ruckus
Smithfield Galaxy
VA Lady Titans
VA Lady Eagles
Virginia Future Gold
Orion Hunter
Backriver Surge
Southside Sting
Wakefield Hornets
Va Cobras


I think that is the bulk of the travel teams that have players represented in the BRD

Legends play ASA/USA Nationals each year when they qualify and only local team to Qualify for the ASA/USA GOLD Nationals.
Most others play PONY or NSA
Weaker Travel Teams play USSSA and SOFTBALL NATION
Some play USFA good teams more competitive at nationals than USSSA and PONY but not as competitive as NSA (A CLASS) and ASA/USA
Some play ASA Format but only qualify to compete in ASA Eastern Nationals
But the BIG SHOW is ASA/USA Nationals for all age groups
Either of the Nationals offer a good experience for the teams.

[sportsfan1]

Quite a few players in BRD play for BR Surge

[coachmickey]

YC Sports Look – TF

Many of the top players in both the PD and BRD play for these organizations:

Yorktown Revolution - for example, Daily Press Mid-season stand outs Gabby Andino (6 years with the Revolution) Ashley Prosper (5 years with the Yorktown Revolution) plus many key players at York, Tabb, Grafton, Warwick, Woodside, Lafayette. And yes, I’m Mickey O’Connor one of the founders of the Revolution.
Back River Surge – very long list of 2008 Senior stand outs (Kris or Jimmy you can add the names.) Surge has done an excellent job with their 18U team.
Williamsburg Starz – Core of Lafayette and Bruton teamz – Coaches Falin and Bunn are good examples where strong cooperation between high school and travel ball has significantly improved these programs.
Virginia Legends – Smithfield’s Dudney, Alora Lincoln and others
Smithfield Galaxy – the Galaxy is doing a fine job developing players for Smithfield and Southside schools.
Peninsula Stars – I’m sorry but I don’t know their players anymore.
Southside Sting – I think one or two Peninsula varsity players play there.

There are several other new travel ball organizations on the Peninsula. I don’t think they have teams in the older age groups, yet. Maybe in a couple of years they’ll start producing top caliber varsity and college bound players too. A rising tide floats all boats!
My apologies if I left someone or some organization of this list, it’s not my intention to short change anyone. Coach Bell's reply named several other Southside and Richmond organizations.

As for tournament organizations/associations…

The key is for the managers to know when and where the highly competitive teams are playing. You do not have to go very far from our area to play high caliber teams. Over my 8 short years with travel ball, the quality for play on the east coast has improved rapidly.

Please be careful when you deride PONY. Clarence Bell pulls in some of the east coast’s best organizations for the Cabin Fever and Ham Slam tournaments. PONY has a long history in this area of putting on excellent tournaments.

USSSA has lost some of its competitiveness.

ASA girl’s fastpitch has not been very well organized in our area. I know many people have tried to get it going. Hopefully, that will change. A couple of area teams, e.g. Legends 18U Gold, travel to the big ASA tournaments. YC Sports Look – if you want more ASA tournament action contact Tidewater Virginia ASA. Please check out their website www.tvasa.org (http://www.tvasa.org/). You won’t find much JO action.

NSA has been fairly well run in Virginia/North Carolina. You can find most of the top Virginia/Maryland/North Carolina teams at NSA Class A tournaments. Again, it’s up to the team managers to seek out the top competition. Class A Nationals are very good.

USFA – the Yorktown Revolution has found USFA North Carolina offers consistent high caliber competition. We took our 2007 14U team to USFA Nationals in Panama City, FL. Competition was great with lots of teams from the Southeast plus Texas and Oklahoma. Coach Bell – My opinion – USFA Class A Nationals are as good or better caliber than NSA Class A based on what we saw last year at USFA.

Softball Nation – Make sure you know which, if any, competitive teams are going to the tournament before you sign up. Some of their big summer tournaments have been good but are losing top teams to NSA’s stronger/much larger organization.

YC Sports Look – please take the time to come to some of the PONY/NSA/USFA tournaments before you write them off as “not ASA” or before you write off the many area travel team organizations that are developing strong athletes and strong young ladies. Where would PD/BRD softball be without all of our travel teams?

[YC Sports Look]

Micky

No intention to deride any organization or association I apologize for implication, I agree with the majority of what you wrote with the exception of:

Where would PD/BRD softball be without all of our travel teams?[/quote]

I feel you have that backwards the travel teams are only as competitive as the kids they field so my assessment is where would the travel teams be without the kids from the PD/BRD. Several teams exist travel team wise however what became of the pipeline from the little leagues to the travel teams to the high schools. We have tons of talent here in the area but I have to question if there is that much talent to field the travel teams.

Terry

[coachmickey]

Terry,
Just to clarify, when I say travel teams I am referring to the players, the parents, the coaches and the organizers.
Travel ball players chose to dedicate themselves to the game. They give up so much time with friends, movies, the beach, etc. all for the opportunity to play at a more competitive level. Virtually all girls that play travel ball improve dramatically and eventually play varsity ball.
The parents give time, money, work bingo and other fundraisers, use precious vacation days all in support of their daughters. These are the parents that love playing catch with their daughters, taking them to the batting cage and those who sit on the bucket getting banged up shins and ankles as their young pitcher stretches her capabilities.
Travel coaches give so much time and money - all for the girls. Time spent preparing fields, planning practices, reading rulebooks, going to clinics,setting up and taking down equipment, working with tournament directors, encouraging and consoling players, having wonderful discussions with some parents, and much more. They give up their vacation time not just for their daughter but for the team. They do this for the game not for pay or profit.
The travel team organizers give up their time and money. They take risks. They setup the organizations business structure, manage the money and create the environment for success.
These things are true of all successful travel teams. You do not need to be an elite player to benefit from travel ball.
When we started the Yorktown Revolution, I was bombarded with complaints from other area travel teams that I was diluting the talent… Not so, we help shape and mold all players. We commit to the players that we will provide them instruction and opportunity. The result – many, many more players in our area are playing at the highest levels of softball. This would not happen if the area travel teams focused only on the “elite” players from ages 10-18.
To all my friends in all the other wonderful travel ball organizations keep up the great work. To all of those in new or just organizing travel teams, stick with it. The benefits for the players are enormous! You’ll create irreplaceable memories for you and the girls.
And when you see games like Woodside at Gloucester April 18, you’ll see so many players you’ve work with or played against for years. You know what the combination of travel ball and school ball has done to lift the competitiveness of softball in Virginia. Play Ball!
Coach Mickey

[Fastpitch Fan]

Coach Mickey has eloquently described the travel ball environment in the Hampton Roads area, so it will be difficult to add to it. There are a few large organizations and a number of one or two team organizations of which the majority have been identified by Coach Bell and Coach Mickey. Regardless of the size of organization the coaches and the members put in countless hours trying to develop an environment for the girls to develop and enjoy their time playing ball. Many times it is more difficult for the smaller organizations without the bingo funding to draw players; as a result the coaches have to work harder to develop a competitive environment that is also enjoyable.

As for who plays for whom in the BRD Smithfield Packers have 5 - Galaxy, 2 - Legends, 1 - Hornets, 1 - Lady Eagles, 1 - Future Gold and 1 - Cobras there are also two seniors who have played with the Sting and Dirt Devils who are not currently playing travel ball.

The Galaxy Fastpitch organization use to be Smithfield Galaxy, however we changed our name as our foot print expanded. We currently have girls playing at the following High Schools; Smithfield, HRA, Kecoughtan, Kempsville, Lakeland, Peninsula Catholic, Isle of Wight Academy, Nansemond River, Kings Fork, South Hampton, Portsmouth Christian, Grafton, Bethel and Prince George.

We have been very lucky in growing over the last few years to 5 fully fielded teams from 10U through 18U, total of 68 young ladies playing competitive softball.

Also, I will agree with Mickey that it is important to search out the competition that most closely meets a team’s capability. As with everything there is overlap between the A and B classification many the teams will determine if they want to be an A or B themselves. If you follow results you will see some B teams can beat the area A teams so to determine the competitive level in any tournament usually requires looking at the teams entered.


Kevin Brink
Galaxy 16U and VP

[CoachBell]

Coach Kevin and Coach Mickey - GREAT Job in righting your responses. I live in Smithfield and I will tell you basically the Revolution and the Galaxy has done the best job with localized talent and helping girls develop for local schools. Other organizations pull potentially a host of talented players from local areas but again they provide training which is beneficial to the varsity teams. My daughter plays for the Legends but I hold very close ties to Galaxy and Revolution we all broke into travel ball about the same time.

I can honestly say that it is the Travel Ball programs, regardless of the tournaments they play, that make or break a High School team based on the talent within their districts. Varsity softball for each school is a formality that holds much pride for all of us but the girls that go on to play in college will get recruited primarily through their Travel Ball Programs and not High School like they would for Football or Basketball. But ultimately it is the player/parents that work hard to get their daughter recruited, the travel teams can provide the venue to be seen.

[YC Sports Look]

Understand all, however you coaches are still skirting the facts,
What is the goal? Getting recruited or getting into a college to further ones education. How many kids are actually being recruited you guys paint a picture that college coaches show up to watch all teams which is absolutely false coaches from the D I and II level are very busy and are seeking selective positions and in most cases selective players so they do not see all the teams in the tournaments and rarely do you see these coaches at anything other then ASA tournament's for a the simple fact the competition is much different. Coach Bell high school ball is not a formality , simple school spirit and pride is high school ball, So i disagree with the mere fact the implication of only recruiting is done at the tournaments.

Coach Mickey you indicated that you received some grief about starting the revolution and diluting the local talent? What was the reason for the start of your team wasn't there any other established travel teams in the area that the girls could have played on? What is the recruiting rates for the teams mentioned

Terry




Coach Kevin and Coach Mickey - GREAT Job in righting your responses. I live in Smithfield and I will tell you basically the Revolution and the Galaxy has done the best job with localized talent and helping girls develop for local schools. Other organizations pull potentially a host of talented players from local areas but again they provide training which is beneficial to the varsity teams. My daughter plays for the Legends but I hold very close ties to Galaxy and Revolution we all broke into travel ball about the same time.

I can honestly say that it is the Travel Ball programs, regardless of the tournaments they play, that make or break a High School team based on the talent within their districts. Varsity softball for each school is a formality that holds much pride for all of us but the girls that go on to play in college will get recruited primarily through their Travel Ball Programs and not High School like they would for Football or Basketball. But ultimately it is the player/parents that work hard to get their daughter recruited, the travel teams can provide the venue to be seen.

[Fastpitch Fan]

Terry

You are touching a number of various issues and I can only give you one more opinion that may or may not help.

First of all, High School Athletics are important whether it is softball, football or band. It provides an opportunity for the student athletes to represent their school outside their normal activities. There is normally significant competition to make the varsity teams in all sports and should be considered an honor to make the varsity team. No one that I know down plays the importance of the high school athletics. Also, the coaches and ADs work tirelessly to continuously improve their programs and take the ups and downs of a season just as personally as any other type of coach (college or travel). There is danger when anyone deals with absolutes so whether travel ball is why the High Schools softball is better or its the other way around is based only on individual opinions. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. If you follow travel ball you will know that there few 16U and 18U tournaments during the school ball season.

The goal for softball players should be no different than any other prospective student and that is to attend college to obtain an education that will help them prosper in life. I feel there is a misunderstanding on the word recruiting. First there are only a few travel ball organizations that DI or DII colleges would consistently look to for recruiting and they are the programs that have been showcasing a high level of talent for a number of years such as the Shamrocks in DC who consistently place the majority of their players in DI and DII schools.

Is it possible for a High School softball player to attend college and play softball without ever playing travel ball and the answer is probably, yes? They would have to communicate with the college coaches and attend the college recruiting camps to get noticed.

How the travel ball programs help is by working with the student athletes within their programs to communicate with the various colleges to determine areas where there is a good fit. The college coaches have only a limited amount of time to do their recruiting, therefore attend specific tournaments to review talent on their prospects lists. If we have a player interested in a specific school we may contact the coach to find out what types of athletes they are looking for, which tournaments they plan on attending, give them our schedule, forward a athlete’s profile and skill video. However, the majority of the effort will still fall on to the individual athlete in trying get infront of the coaching staff and to develop a relationship. So the majority of the schools are not recruiting an individual teams player, however the travel team is facilitating the recruiting process. Almost every recruiting survey for a prospective softball player I have seen asks who they played travel ball for and the coach’s contact information.

It still comes down to academics it does not matter how fast the fastball is if the grades and SATs are not there.

I am not sure if this helps or not.

Kevin

[YC Sports Look]

Kevin

Well put, you are spot on


Terry

You are touching a number of various issues and I can only give you one more opinion that may or may not help.

First of all, High School Athletics are important whether it is softball, football or band. It provides an opportunity for the student athletes to represent their school outside their normal activities. There is normally significant competition to make the varsity teams in all sports and should be considered an honor to make the varsity team. No one that I know down plays the importance of the high school athletics. Also, the coaches and ADs work tirelessly to continuously improve their programs and take the ups and downs of a season just as personally as any other type of coach (college or travel). There is danger when anyone deals with absolutes so whether travel ball is why the High Schools softball is better or its the other way around is based only on individual opinions. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. If you follow travel ball you will know that there few 16U and 18U tournaments during the school ball season.

The goal for softball players should be no different than any other prospective student and that is to attend college to obtain an education that will help them prosper in life. I feel there is a misunderstanding on the word recruiting. First there are only a few travel ball organizations that DI or DII colleges would consistently look to for recruiting and they are the programs that have been showcasing a high level of talent for a number of years such as the Shamrocks in DC who consistently place the majority of their players in DI and DII schools.

Is it possible for a High School softball player to attend college and play softball without ever playing travel ball and the answer is probably, yes? They would have to communicate with the college coaches and attend the college recruiting camps to get noticed.

How the travel ball programs help is by working with the student athletes within their programs to communicate with the various colleges to determine areas where there is a good fit. The college coaches have only a limited amount of time to do their recruiting, therefore attend specific tournaments to review talent on their prospects lists. If we have a player interested in a specific school we may contact the coach to find out what types of athletes they are looking for, which tournaments they plan on attending, give them our schedule, forward a athlete’s profile and skill video. However, the majority of the effort will still fall on to the individual athlete in trying get infront of the coaching staff and to develop a relationship. So the majority of the schools are not recruiting an individual teams player, however the travel team is facilitating the recruiting process. Almost every recruiting survey for a prospective softball player I have seen asks who they played travel ball for and the coach’s contact information.

It still comes down to academics it does not matter how fast the fastball is if the grades and SATs are not there.

I am not sure if this helps or not.

Kevin

[CoachBell]

Kevin very well done - academics are far more important for female athletes than male athletes. Which all should consider it equally important to boys and girls but it isn't. Example football recruits you will find an athlete that is dumb as a box of rocks but can still manage to get a scholarship for athletics to a college where they can major in basket weaving. But for a female athlete since there really isn't a PRO status for their sport, they must achieve higher expectations for themselves with academics. Which is far better- honestly-- I would prefer an athlete with brains than an athlete with none. All coaches school or travel ball should adhere to making sure the academics comes first, which in most cases they do I believe for girls anyway. Again good job on your post

[falcon02]

I think it is worth mentioning, when comparing the travel ball players and high school players, that the game is significantly different for the 18U players facing a pitcher throwing from 43 ft., instead of the high school distance of 40 ft. The pitchers that regularly dominate the high school game are not as dominating from the farther distance. The hard throwers are not nearly as difficult to figure out for the hitters, as the pitcher who has developed the "spin" pitches. Anyway... the high school powers that be would probably do girls softball a favor by going to the 43 ft pitching distance and making the game more comparable to the girls' college game, thus maybe attracting more interest from the college coaches when they are scouting for talented players. The boys' baseball games are played at the same distances in high school and college.

[NKFAN]

Another team not mentioned, is Virginia Rowdies.:)

[CoachBell]

Did not think they had a player, who is she - must play for New Kent

[NKFAN]

That's correct.:)

[CoachBell]

I think it is worth mentioning, when comparing the travel ball players and high school players, that the game is significantly different for the 18U players facing a pitcher throwing from 43 ft., instead of the high school distance of 40 ft. The pitchers that regularly dominate the high school game are not as dominating from the farther distance. The hard throwers are not nearly as difficult to figure out for the hitters, as the pitcher who has developed the "spin" pitches. Anyway... the high school powers that be would probably do girls softball a favor by going to the 43 ft pitching distance and making the game more comparable to the girls' college game, thus maybe attracting more interest from the college coaches when they are scouting for talented players. The boys' baseball games are played at the same distances in high school and college.

I do that there many players including Freshman in the BRD that plays 18U and 16U Travel tournaments both of which offer 43 and 40 ft pending on the association and the tournametn that particular team played in. Many teams that don't travel much outside the area may pitch only from 40.

[CoachBell]

That's correct.:)

What number does she wear, I know the coach for the Rowdies (Sherie) - didn't know she had a player playing at New Kent that is pretty darn good. She has been able to draw players from a variety of areas developing her team to new heights.

[softball93]

I feel that the travel teams and High Schools Should work hand in hand. One exists to embrace the other. If you look at the very good High School teams they are laced with travel ball players. If at a High School you do not have any travel ball players you will not have a very successful season. Just ask the Bethel coach.

[NKFAN]

I believe she wears # 6;)
What number does she wear, I know the coach for the Rowdies (Sherie) - didn't know she had a player playing at New Kent that is pretty darn good. She has been able to draw players from a variety of areas developing her team to new heights.