And then there were 8!

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been enjoying all the softball action in this year’s post season.  Super Regionals were crazy with many matchups going to Game 3.  Now we’re down to our Final 8…

1. Alabama
2. Arizona State
3. Florida
4. Oklahoma State
5. Oklahoma
6. California
7. Baylor
8. Missouri

Who’s your favorite?

Even though not all games are televised, I was able to keep up with a lot of the action via Twitter.  You’d be surprised how many softball teams have an account that you can follow!   Not only that, you can follow NCAA Softball themselves.

The NCAA website has the full bracket laid out as well as a printable version you can save to your computer or print out for your convenience.

See the 2011 DI Bracket

If you want to know which games will be broadcast and where, click here.

I’m looking forward to watching the series unfold.  I really don’t have a favorite at this point, but I sure did enjoy watching Mizzou’s Thomas in the circle!

What about you?

Who are your rooting for?

How come players don’t practice on own during week – team practice doesn’t count – yet they want 2 play n college? Help me understand

Oh man!  Sorry Cindy, I can’t help you there because I don’t get it either.  I could go on and on and on about this subject, but let me just touch upon the flurry of thoughts that immediately ran through my head when I read her tweet.

First of all, forget “practice on their own.” I see so many young softball players today who *think* they are on their way to the next level or *say* they want to play in college and yet they can’t even make it a point to give their best effort during TEAM practice!

Read this and think about it: When I compare college practice to youth practice, I’m sure you’d agree that, for the most part, college practice is  far more demanding.  What you may not realize is that on top of this more demanding practice, every college player that I personally know puts in time OUTSIDE of the required team practice time to train. If you’re having a hard time with the concept of putting in “your own time” for training now, when you’re regular team practice isn’t nearly as demanding as it will be in college, how do you expect to survive in the college environment where practices are longer, harder, more demanding AND the rest of your teammates are ready and willing to put in the extra time on their own on top of that to get better?

Who cares what I think? I’m not a college coach. You’re right, I’m not…and probably neither is your travel ball or your high school softball coach.

HOWEVER, if any of them are telling you you’re not doing enough or that you have work to do because you’re not where you need to be yet, I highly suggest you LISTEN!

Why should you listen to them? They aren’t the college coach you’re trying to impress right? You think some college coach is going to be impressed with you because you got skills?

You know what? I’ll admit, you might be right. They may very well be impressed with what they see on display at a tournament here or there; or on film that you send them. But what about when they begin seeing you day in and day out like your coach does?

Wake up call coming up in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…

If your coach…

• who is NOT a college coach
• who does NOT have the same high standards or expectations that college coaches do
• who’s livelihood does NOT depend on coaching your team…

If he ain’t impressed…What makes you think a college coach will be?

Yeah, maybe you’ll get there, but then what?

Then you get a major kick in the butt because all this time you’ve had your mind and ears closed to what your coaches have been trying to tell you? Because you’ve been under an illusion about your own skills and work ethic? Because you thought your cannon for an arm and your big bat were going to be enough to “Wow” those college coaches beyond belief that they would blindly overlook the flaws your coaches see?

Look, I’m not saying this to be mean or disrespectful. I’m saying all of this so that you, hopefully, get the wake up call BEFORE you fall flat on your face in college and have to figure out how to scrape yourself up off the ground.

The transition to the college level is tough enough when you are well prepared. I believe that no matter where you go, no matter how good you are, it’ll be an adjustment. If you go in unprepared or under-prepared, college can be tremendously overwhelming.  College is a different pace, a different routine from what you’re used to.  Pile all that up with your lack of preparation on the softball front and you may start doubting whether or not you really belong there.  Players quit playing and drop out of college because of this kind of thing.  I don’t want this to happen to you.

Do the work NOW to prepare yourself as much as you can for the journey ahead. Listen to the feedback others are giving you and use whatever you can to make yourself better.  If the situation you’re in is a cake walk and isn’t challenging to you, find a way to challenge yourself so that you’re not shocked by the obstacles you may come across in the future.  Practice dealing with and overcoming adversity now so that you’ll be able to tackle it head on in the next chapter of your life, whatever that may be.  There is a lot to enjoy after high school BUT you have to be willing to prepare now in order to reap those rewards at any level.

If you’re not on Twitter yet, it’s very easy to sign up.

1. Go to Twitter.com
2. Click on the sign up button.
3. Follow the directions.

You can literally have your own twitter account within minutes!

Once you have your account, the easiest thing to do to find a lot of cool softball people to follow is go to My Page, then click on the “following link.”

That will show you all the people I’m following, then you can simply go down the list and click on the “Follow” button for the people or teams you want to see updates from.

Oh yeah, and don’t forget to follow me too!

Enjoy!

Revolution Prep – Revolutionizing SAT/ACT Prep for Student-Athletes
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqX0L_XmDH8

Need help with the college recruiting process AND test prep?  Talk with a live person at NCSA

If you missed it on TV for whatever reason…here’s the bottom of the 7th of the UH vs Alabama game.  Gotta love YouTube!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJvYE6oLgxc

By the time your a junior, HALF your academic time has already passed.  ONE great semester does not undo the sins of four, or six for that matter.  While you may not care much about your grades now, believe me, when you’re a senior, and you’ve finally gotten serious about what happens after high school and your ready to grab ahold of the freedom you so desperately want – you WILL care.  You WILL want as many opportunities as possible. You WILL feel frustrated and bummed and sick when there are wonderful opportunities right there in front of you but you aren’t able to take advantage of them because you didn’t take care of business in the classroom as an underclassman.

I know, you may be only 14 0r 15, but the poor choices you make now will eventually come back to haunt you at what will likely be the most inopportune time.  Do NOT let this happen to you.  Give yourself a chance!  Start preparing for the future NOW!  Get in the habit of making good decisions and choices now.

• Wake up and get to school on time every day.
• Go to class every day.
• Do your homework every day.
• Get to practice on time every day.
• Do quality work in the classroom and on the field every day.
• Be your best every day.

The more you practice making the right decisions, the easier it will become and the more prepared you will be for life after high school.  Making good choices now will set you up for the brightest, most exciting, most enjoyable future possible.  High school and college are fun, fun years IF you make the right decisions.

Don’t leave your future to chance.  Make it what you want by laying the groundwork now.  It’s never too early to start practicing good habits or start making good decisions.  Be the best you can be every day.  Good things will come your way.

The cool thing? Anyone that’s a fan of softball and wants to watch this year’s WAC Tournament LIVE via the internet will have the opportunity to do so at WAC.tv. Find out more from this article http://www.ktvn.com/Global/story.asp?S=12391377

I hope to catch a few games, but we’ll see. Busy schedule this week!

Hope you have a great softball week!

This week is an exciting week in softball all over the place I’m sure and Hawaii is no exception. If you don’t live in Hawaii, don’t dismiss this message just yet. There will be a way you can watch some of the Hawaii action live via the internet! I’ll tell you more about that in a second.

Anyway – the Hawaii High School State Softball Championships begin TODAY at UH Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium. Today’s games are at 1:00, 3:00, 5:00, and 7:00 pm. Admission is $7 for adults and $5 for kids and seniors.

There are also Div II games going on at CORP. Today there are a total of 4 games. Two starting at 5:00pm and the other two starting at 7:00pm.

While none of today’s games are being shown via the internet, games on Thursday and Friday will be shown online via live streaming video at http://www.oc16.tv. Two games will be shown each night. One starting at 5:00pm HST and the other at 7:00pm HST.

If you’re in Hawaii and want to catch some fun college action, head over to HPU for NCAA Div II Regionals this weekend starting Friday.

For more information on the Hawaii High School State Softball Championships, check out today’s article at http://bit.ly/acF0Ob

To view the bracket for the NCAA Div II Softball Oahu Regional go to http://bit.ly/9OQUUp

NCAA Div II Regionals Hub is at http://bit.ly/b6Q4dQ

Enjoy!!!

“How Do I Stack Up?”

This player is a freshman that college coaches of some of the best programs in the nation already know about.  She’s got great grades and doesn’t have to be hounded by her parents or coaches about it.  She’s not one of those players who’s been playing since she was 5 and yet, she can hit the ball and “has it all” as a pitcher.

AND is just a freshman in high school this year!

So how do you stack up?  Where are you in your skills and grades and attitude?  Are you working hard enough?  Or are you just “settling” for “being the best” where you are at?  Are you really, truly striving to being the best you can?  Why should a coach choose you?  Can you do better?  Can you strive for more?  Can you push for more than you’re doing now?  Do you need to raise the level of your softball performance?

Maybe now is a good time to do a serious self-check and re-evaluate your direction.  Be Great!

Yahoo Sports also shows a list of college sports that will be broadcast in some way shape or form so you can check there to see if your favorite college softball team is one of them.

Another place to follow your college team online is CSTV. You can search for specific events or schools there.

Hopefully we see even more and more of these avenues for following softball pop up!

By the way - who’s your favorite college team this year? Leave a comment here and let us know!

When I heard that…this is what I wanted to say to them right through the tv…

Adding your name to an online database that coaches can search is NOT “taking control” of your college recruiting process.

There I said it.

Adding your name to an online database is NOT “taking control” of your college recruiting process.  Neither is adding videos to YouTube or going to a recruiting camp.

I’m not saying those things are useless or that you shouldn’t do them, but there’s so much more you can do.  Those things in and of themselves are just a small sliver of what you should be doing if you really want to take control of your college recruiting journey!

“Taking control” involves doing your homework.  It means:

• Knowing where you have to be academically
• Knowing what the NCAA requires of you to be eligible
• Knowing what different program require in the level(s) of play you are interested in (not always the same as what the NCAA requires)
• Knowing what type of school is a good fit for you
• Knowing what to ask college coaches
• Knowing what to ask yourself so you can find the right fit
• Knowing what you need to get done by when
• Knowing what you CAN do and when
• Making sure YOU are in contact with coaches before they are even allowed to get in touch with you
• Knowing whether or not it’s better for you or your parents to be corresponding with a college coach
• Having the information college coaches need about you in order to make a decision readily available
• Getting prepared for college entrance exams
• Having a strategy!!!
• …and so much more

Putting your name “out there” in public places and hoping to be found is not going to cut it.  That will not give you the best opportunities possible by the time your college recruiting journey come to an end. Remember – there are no re-dos. Get educated. Get informed. And if you need help, some of the best in the business are ready to walk you through it all at NCSA.

If you’re serious about playing at the college level and have been taking care of business on and off the field, you can have someone from NCSA personally give you a call by filling out the form at HERE.

And yes, for student-athletes who use that link and become part of the NCSA family, NCSA does make donations back to AAF.  However, if you do not wish for them to do that, you can also visit them at their main company link at

http://www.ncsasports.org/

Whatever your choice, you can have a real person talk with you about your options plus get a username and password to set up your own athletic resume web page with no risk and no money required by going HERE and filling out your contact information.

Wishing you the best,

Stacie Mahoe

1. Prepping for the SAT/ACT

Many students don’t see the point in taking prep courses until they realize they need a higher SAT or ACT score to get into the college they want to go to. By this time they’re scrambling at the last minute to take classes to learn the valuable test taking strategies that will help them improve their scores. Now imagine if you had start early and begin this test taking preparation in your freshman or sophomore year. By the time you’re junior year rolls around you begin taking her entrance exams, you’ll have had time to get really comfortable with the test taking strategies and the vocabulary words most test prep programs cover. Starting early just gives you more time to really get well prepared vs. trying to cram at the last minute.

Plus, imagine having to take that SAT or ACT as a senior knowing you need a great score and knowing that your chances are running out. That’s a lot of pressure to carry into a test! Why not get it out of the way sooner? You’ll probably perform better if your aren’t at the point where you whole college future is riding on the test you’re about to take. Can it still come down to that even with the planning? Yes. But at least if you start early and take the prep courses and tests earlier, you know exactly where you stand and what you need to do to get where you needs to be by senior year. Plus, if you start early, you’ll probably have a few years vs. just a few months to work on it.

2. The GPA Factor

Grade point averages are a lot like batting averages, shooting percentages, or per game averages. The further you get into the season and the more games you have under your belt, the tougher it is to raise your average, even with an awesome game performance. The same is true for grade point averages. The farther along you are in your high school career, the tougher it’s going to be to raise that GPA even with straight A’s. In the beginning of a softball season a 4-4 game can raise your batting average hundreds of points. Just like a GPA, if you have a perfect semester or two (or even good semesters in the beginning), your GPA will be nice and high. But toward the end of the season a great game may only raise your batting average 20 points or so, if that. By the same token it’s very tough to try to raise a 2.6 GPA to a 3.0 in just a semester or two. I don’t even know if it’s possible. I haven’t worked the numbers, but if it is, it’s certainly very tough! If you start planning early, if you know where you need to be to give yourself the best opportunities at the end of your high school years. Plus, if you keep an eye on your progress and make sure your necessary GPA is always in sight or surpassed, that just makes your life so much easier toward the end.

3. The Physical Factor

Another aspect to take into consideration is the physical factor. You simply aren’t going to go from average to elite in 1 year. For instanc, if a softball players is running a 3.4 second home to first time and she needs to be at 3.0 or better by senior year, wouldn’t it be better to begin working on that from her freshman year and give her a good amount of time to really improve? It’s certainly much more attainable than trying to go from 3.4 in the middle of junior year to 3.0 by the start of senior year. Some things are just about physically impossible. Again, early planning can give you the best chance of being where you need to be when you need to be there. Plus it’ll give you ample time to prepare and work toward those goals. That makes the journey less stressful and more successful. So don’t wait! Start that process of preparing for the future as soon as high school begins! If you need a little help, check out some of the free college resources at http://www.allaboutfastpitch.com/freeresources.html.

—

If you’re serious about playing softball in college, get help with your own personalized college recruiting plan with NCSA.  It’s college recruiting simplified!

Still to this day it amazes me how many student-athletes and parents put off learning about or taking steps in the college recruiting process.  I’m not sure if it’s too scary and they just don’t want to think about it or if they’re just unsure of what to do and don’t know where to get help so they wait until they get a kick in the butt at the last minute to get started.  Whatever the case, there’s one thought that I want to share today:

When it comes to college recruiting, there are NO Do Overs!

Once you’re in high school, that’s it, you have ONE chance to go through high school, play your sports, get the grades you’re going to get, take your entrance exams, contact college coaches, etc and hopefully have a successful journey on to the next level.  Not only do you get just one shot at the journey as a whole, but there are so many things during the journey that, once your opportunity comes along, it’s the ONLY one you get!  If you miss it, it’s gone forever. 

Take your freshman year in school as a simple example.  Once that year is over, you don’t go back and get to do it all over again if you didn’t quite get the grades you wanted.  You basically have one shot and that’s it.  If you mess around and don’t get very good grades, you’re stuck trying to play “catch up” for the rest of your high school career trying to make up for the poor choices you made in that first year of high school.

There are no Do Overs for college recruiting.  You will only go through this process as a high school student ONCE.  That’s it!

So don’t wait ’till “later” to take care of your grades.  Don’t wait ’till “later” to improve your athleticism and your skills.  Don’t wait ’till “later” to find out what you need to do during high school to give yourself the best chance at moving on to college.  Don’t wait ’till “later” to get the help you need with college entrance exams or any other part of the process.  “Later” just may come and go and pass you by if you’re not ready.

If you’re already in high school (or if your child is already in high school), the time to start has already passed!  Get going!

If you’ll be in high school soon, it’s never too early to start learning about what to expect in the upcoming years.  It’s much less stressful and complicated if you educate yourself and learn as much as you can BEFORE having to execute your plan.  Trying to learn as you go can be frustrating, overwhelming, and disappointing when you realize you’ve missed something because there’s no going back.

Where to Get Help

The NCAA just released their 2009-2010 Guide for the College-Bound Student Athlete.  It’s free, you can get it HERE.  I highly suggest you download it, read it, and become very familiar with it.

If the whole college recruiting process seems a little scary or overwhelming to you and you’d like some guidance along the way or if you’re just starting and want to make sure you’re on the right path from the beginning, you can get the help you need.  If you’re serious about adding a few more years to your fastpitch softball career while getting an education, NCSA can help you create a plan to help you reach those goals.

What do I mean by “serious?”  Serious student-athletes don’t just “want” to play in college, but  actively work toward that goal by taking care of business ON and OFF the field, by making good choices, and always striving to learn and grow.  If that’s you, you’re exactly the type of student-athlete NCSA can help.   To have someone contact you personally, fill out the form HERE.

Wishing you the best on your college recruiting journey!  Playing is college softball is so much fun ~ I hope you get to experience it.

Fail photo:http://www.flickr.com/photos/phobia/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

What I didn’t know was that, at the very beginning of her college career, this player started off as a pinch runner. That’s all she was doing.

Her mom remembers talking with her after the first few games of that freshman season. She’d call and ask how the games went and if she got to play. Her daughter would say that “all she did” was pinch run. After a few games, the softball mom could hear the increasing frustration and irritation in her daughter’s voice. One day, when her daughter told her that all she did was pinch run, she responded with,

“Well then you better be the best pinch runner your team has ever seen.”

Her daughter later told her that that had been a wake up call for her. It was a turning point in her college career. After that phone call, she made a decision to stop grumbling, work her butt off, and take advantage of every opportunity she did get.

Most softball players, whether they are conscious of it or not, make this same kind of choice every single day. As a player, you can choose to be frustrated and irritated and grumble about your situation; or you can choose to stay away from that negative mindset, work your butt off, stay focused on improving, and take advantage of whatever opportunities come your way. These opportunities do not only come in games. They come in practice as well.

I’ve also heard players grumble about not having as many chances as other players do, and while that may very well be the case, they are more productive ways to spend your time and energy. Instead of focusing on what you don’t have, it serves you better to stay positive and make it a point to make the best of any opportunity you do get.  Stop focusing on what you don’t have and start fully appreciating and making the most of what you do have. You’re much more likely to be successful that way.

So how did this player I mentioned earlier go from being “just a pinch runner” to being Conference Freshman of the Year?

Well, one day a player on her team was having a rough day. The coach decided to put her in the game to replace that player.  She had a great day and that was it.  She never looked back.  She became a regular starter and ended up as the Freshman Player of the Year in her conference.  It’s a great example of how having the right mindset and attitude as a player can propel you to great things.

As a parent, are you cultivating the right mindset?  Or do you add to and feed the negativity your daughter sometimes falls into?
Photo:

What do you think – will softball follow?

TO: College Baseball Bat Manufacturers.

FROM: xxxxx xxxxx, chair
NCAA Baseball Rules Committee.

SUBJECT: Composite Bat Moratorium.

This correspondence is being sent on behalf of the Baseball Rules Committee, alerting the college baseball bat manufacturing community to an important action being taken in regard to certain bats that have been used in NCAA competition. After significant dialog and review of research collected during the Division I Baseball Championship, the committee is proposing an immediate and indefinite moratorium on the use of composite barreled bats. The committee believes this action is needed in order to protect the integrity of the game and to enhance the safety of the student-athletes.

Before the committee’s recent meeting, numerous concerns were voiced by the membership with a request for action. After a thorough review of compliance testing and a review of the improved performance of composite bats, often exceeding NCAA acceptable limits, these concerns have proven to be valid. Therefore, the committee has decided to put an immediate and indefinite moratorium on the use of composite bats in NCAA competition.

The research reviewed included compliance testing during the Division I Baseball Championship. During this testing, 80 percent of the composite bats tested failed the current NCAA performance level. Because all bat designs must pass this test before mass production, this research indicates that the performance of such bats changed thereafter, most likely due to repeated, normal use and/or intentional alteration. Offensive statistics at the Division I level also indicate a significant increase in batting averages and home runs the past two seasons.

By proposing a moratorium, the committee is not necessarily discarding the possibility of a return of composite bats to NCAA competition at some point in the future, and looks forward to working with manufacturers in an attempt to find a solution towards that end.

The committee requests your feedback and proposed solutions to this issue. Please send any feedback to xxxxx xxxxx at the NCAA (xxxxx@ncaa.org).

Thank you for your attention to this memorandum.

What do you think?

• How do you feel about this change?
• Do you in favor of it?
• Do you think softball will follow?
• How would you feel about that???

Leave me a comment here and let me know.

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you’ve heard me talk about Twitter.   Even if you haven’t, you’ve probably heard about Twitter through some other source.  Many major news stations, radio stations, newspapers, celebrities, and softball people are ALL on Twitter.

Now you have another reason to jump into the fun – COLLEGE.

Earlier this week, ESPN published an article about how colleges and college coaches are tapping into social networks like Twitter and Facebook for recruiting and exposure.

Some coaches use Twitter as a way to allow fans and potential recruits to see what the program/coach is like.  Others utilize it as a way to “stay in front” of a recruits face (and at the forefront of their minds) without breaking NCAA contact period rules.  According to the article:

“Currently, the NCAA allows coaches to direct-message recruits from Twitter or send them a private message on Facebook.”

If you’re looking to attend college and play sports – this is HUGE!!!

Like me, there are coaches out there who prefer Twitter over Facebook “mostly because of the ease of posting.”   Of course, there are others like my husband who prefer Facebook because there are more pictures and it’s similar to MySpace which he’s already familiar with.  Twitter does have a different sort of layout/format and does take a little while to get used to, but once you do, you’ll love it!

The ESPN article also talks about why Twitter is so super popular:

“It’s the reason why USA Today worked. It’s the reason why people want to see the ticker on ESPN. [People] don’t want large bites. Give me a small bite; make it fast, I’ll see what it is, I’ll laugh and I’ll move on to something else.”

Another important point…

“The one thing I like is that it’s a little bit of an unobstructed view,” Calipari said. “They (fans/recruits) get to know what you are and how you are and how you think without someone telling them who you are, what you are and how you think.”

So you don’t have to take someone’s word for it. You have a way to judge for yourself what a program or coach is like. This is a very important part of choosing the right college for yourself or helping your child do so.

Signing up for Twitter is super easy…

1.  Go to Twitter.com and click on the green Get Started – Join! button at the bottom of the screen.

2.  Fill out the fields on the next page and click Create My Account

3.  Choose the options you want on the following pages (add contacts from e-mail or follow suggested users) and you’re all done!

Once you’re in, here are some softball coaches you can follow…

AuburnSBCoach

coachjaymiller

UFCoachWalton

UACoachMurphy

…and you’ll probably also want to check out the other cool softball people I listed in this post and this post.

Happy Tweeting!

This is the kind of interesting and valuable information available in the NCAA’s Guide for the College Bound Student-Athlete (and this guide is free, just Google it for the most current version). If you have any inclination that you *might* want to continue your athletic career in college, then you should definitely have a copy of the NCAA’s Guide. Read it front to back and USE the information and the tools they provide for you in that free guide.

If you’re between your junior and senior year right now: Are you getting calls from coaches? If not, you’re behind the game. Believe me, coaches ARE already contacting players they are interested in. But don’t give up yet!

• Get the NCAA Guide
• Read all the College Recruiting Articles here at AAF
• Check out the other free College Recruiting information AAF provides
• And take action!

If you are feeling overwhelmed and have no idea where to start…If you need someone to take you by the hand and help you put a plan together and get moving in the right direction, there’s no one else I recommend at this time than NCSA. I love these guys because they are good people who are passionate about what they do and they help student-athletes and their families just like yours every single day. Check them out and fill out the form HERE and they’ll call you to help you with that college recruiting plan.

The Competition is FIERCE!

I know, you’re probably thinking, “Duh, I already know that.”

I’m not talking about the competition you’re in for a scholarship, I’m talking about the competition coaches are in battling to get the best players and strengthen their program.

Have you ever thought about that side of it before?

One thing you have to realize about this whole thing is that technology has seriously changed the game.  People are connecting like never before.  Information spreads from one end of the country to the other (heck even around the world) in seconds!  The internet has forever changed communication and, as a result, the college recruiting game.

After all, put yourself in a college coaches shoes for a second.   You’re trying to build the best team possible so that you can have successful seasons and keep your job.  However, with the speed at which information travels now days, if you know about  great player, chances are so do at least a dozen other coaches.  Great news travels fast and news about a great player is certainly no exception.  Wouldn’t you, as a coach, want to be on top of the game and get in touch with this player before some other big fish has the chance to snatch her up?  After all, if you sit back and wait, some other team is going to get stacked up with all the best players and you’re team will end up losing to theirs 8 days a week.

Make no mistake, the competition among coaches to get players for their team is probably close to as fierce as the competition to get that spot on a college team.  That’s why college coaches are starting to identify prospects earlier and earlier. Don’t kid yourself by thinking that this doesn’t happen since college coaches aren’t allowed to talk to players until junior year.  Scholarship funds ARE being “allocated” BEFORE student-athletes reach their junior year for many program.  If you wait until then, it may be too late to get the opportunities you were looking for.

Yes, it’s true that not all colleges are that far ahead of the recruiting time line.  Not all college coaches start looking for prospects in the freshman and sophomore classes.  The FTR Episode I did with Bill Vasko, DII Softball Coach explains that a bit further.   However, why eliminate a chunk of your options simply by making the decision to WAIT in this college recruiting process?

Remember, college coaches are starting earlier and earlier to get a jump on their competition.  That means YOU need to be ready sooner than players of the past.  Don’t wait!  If you’re a high school aged softball player, your journey has already started. What have you done so far?

Need help getting started? Check out these awesome college recruiting resources.

1.  Get the NCAA’s Guide for the College Bound Student-Athlete (free download).  I won’t post a link here because it changes every year as they put out a new publication every year.  But if you Google “NCAA Guide for the College Bound Student-Athlete” you should be able to find it rather quickly.  Get the guide.  Read it cover to cover.  Make sure you understand it and do the things the NCAA suggests.

2.  I have a couple of free college recruiting resources up on our Fastpitch Freebies page.  Check those out as well.

3.  $1 College Recruiting Webinar:  I did a webinar on why it’s so super important to start early.    Got some valuable information in there and it’ll only cost ya a buck.

4.  Online College Recruiting Educational System:  Feel like there’s more you need to know about the college recruiting process?  Learn the ins and outs of college recruiting so that you can create your own blue print for success.

5.  Help from NCSA: The college recruiting process can be overwhelming and frustrating.  If you feel that you need personal assistance through this journey you can get it from people who help families like yours every day.  They are as passionate about what they do as you are about softball.  The only people I recommend for this is NSCA.  As much as I know about this process, I plan in tapping into the wealth of knowledge and expertise they bring to the table when my oldest daughter begins her journey in 2010.

]]> http://allaboutfastpitch.com/Blog/college-recruiting-tip-why-start-early/feed/ 0 http://allaboutfastpitch.com/Blog/even-more-cool-softball-people-on-twitter/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=even-more-cool-softball-people-on-twitter http://allaboutfastpitch.com/Blog/even-more-cool-softball-people-on-twitter/#comments Thu, 04 Jun 2009 12:24:29 +0000 Stacie Mahoe http://allaboutfastpitch.com/Blog/?p=918 Continue reading →]]> Gosh, I just found even more really cool softball people on Twitter.  Check this out!

@jfinch27, @catosterman, @EricaBeach, @kempf5, @CaitlinLowe

@UACoachMurphy, @ProSballTrainer

Yes, that’s Jennie Finch, Cat Osterman, Cheri Kempf, Caitlin Lowe, Pat Murphy, and ProSballTrainer is Erin (Former Pro Softball Coach of the New England Riptide & Washington Glory, Private Instructor, Director of www.thesoftballnetwork.com).  Erica Beach is a 29 year old Assistant Softball Coach for the Ohio State Buckeyes and former Pro softball player!

And that’s in addition to all the great softball names I shared in this post.

See what these people are talking about, what their up to, possibly get into real time conversations with them too.  If you’re not on twitter yet, it’s free!  Lotsa WCWS talk this past week.  Join in the conversation by signing up for a free account at Twitter.com.

This live blogging even will begin at 7:00 Central (2:00 Hawaii Time).  Share your thoughts on the game and read mine and others as it happens! We won’t be able to go the entire game, but we’ll stay “Live” right here at AAF from 2:00pm-3:00pm Hawaii Time (in other words, for the first hour of the game).