Active DMV Travel Fastpitch Forums?

[Anonymous]

My family is new to travel softball and I'm looking to get the lay of the land as far as local play and teams go. Anyone aware of any relevant discussion boards? I've found a few, but they seem out of date with few, if any, recent posts.

Thanks for any info you can offer.

[Anonymous]

I’m not aware of any discussion boards. If you share your general area, how far you are willing to travel for practices, and the age and skill level, we might be able to suggest some organizations for you to explore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m not aware of any discussion boards. If you share your general area, how far you are willing to travel for practices, and the age and skill level, we might be able to suggest some organizations for you to explore.

Thanks! We've got a team for the summer, but I'm not sure if it'll be viable after that point. Since DD is new to travel, I think it'll be a good experience and we'll be better able to judge her skills after that and figure out if it's the team for her. (I'll definitely be back for advice at that point if we need to make a change.)

Right now I'm mostly looking to learn more about DMV teams and play in general, and maybe a bit about college recruiting, in case that ever becomes a possibilty at any level.

Much appreciated! I think I may be out of luck, but if anyone knows of anything, please chime in!

[Anonymous]

OP - are you in MD or VA? I know the lay of the land a bit in MD, if you have any questions

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - are you in MD or VA? I know the lay of the land a bit in MD, if you have any questions

And I know Virginia, at least at the 10U/12U levels.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - are you in MD or VA? I know the lay of the land a bit in MD, if you have any questions

And I know Virginia, at least at the 10U/12U levels.

Thanks to you both. I'm in DC, closer to MD, but close-in VA isn't a stretch. DD is in her later HS years and only recently made the switch to softball. She's got a trainer who's also a coach and can be helpful with teams to some extent if needed. Her trainer says she's got college potential (though I don't imagine D1, which is her preference for college environment, but not for level of athletic commitment).

So SB isn't likely to happen in college, but I'd like her to have options if she wants to try for it. To that end, I want to get her on a solid team for more experience and exposure. She tried out for just one team and made it, but it looks like the team is now playing at a less competitive level than they were before she tried out. If she's capable, I'd like her to play at a higher level. (I think the team may be losing a lot of girls after the summer, so she may need to try to find a new team for the fall anyway.)

Given all that (and the fact that I know approximately nothing about SB), I'm looking to figure out what her best options are, which teams have good players and great coaching, who does best at college exposure and recruitment, and what we should be thinking about now to position her well. And even if college isn't in her future, I really want her to find a good team that's fun for her. She's not a super-social kid, so I think level of competitiveness is a place where she gets enjoyment. In the end, though, what's most important to her is that she just gets to play.

Thanks again for any thoughts you can share.

[Anonymous]

At the high school level, I've found most of the more competitive teams are unfortunately not very close to DC. Think Urbana and Clarksburg or even neighboring counties. Having said that, Bethesda and Rockville have clubs, but in recent years, they haven't been powerhouses. So, if you are willing to drive farther for practices, you will have a better chance of finding a team that will offer more recruitment exposure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - are you in MD or VA? I know the lay of the land a bit in MD, if you have any questions

And I know Virginia, at least at the 10U/12U levels.

Thanks to you both. I'm in DC, closer to MD, but close-in VA isn't a stretch. DD is in her later HS years and only recently made the switch to softball. She's got a trainer who's also a coach and can be helpful with teams to some extent if needed. Her trainer says she's got college potential (though I don't imagine D1, which is her preference for college environment, but not for level of athletic commitment).

So SB isn't likely to happen in college, but I'd like her to have options if she wants to try for it. To that end, I want to get her on a solid team for more experience and exposure. She tried out for just one team and made it, but it looks like the team is now playing at a less competitive level than they were before she tried out. If she's capable, I'd like her to play at a higher level. (I think the team may be losing a lot of girls after the summer, so she may need to try to find a new team for the fall anyway.)

Given all that (and the fact that I know approximately nothing about SB), I'm looking to figure out what her best options are, which teams have good players and great coaching, who does best at college exposure and recruitment, and what we should be thinking about now to position her well. And even if college isn't in her future, I really want her to find a good team that's fun for her. She's not a super-social kid, so I think level of competitiveness is a place where she gets enjoyment. In the end, though, what's most important to her is that she just gets to play.

Thanks again for any thoughts you can share.

Gotcha. Like PP, I'm more familar with the 10u/12u scene but can offer my thoughts. The reality is that she's missed tryouts for the better teams, and will have to wait until later in the summer. You should join & monitor the 'Maryland Fastpitch Softball Teams' forum on FB; there will likely be teams looking for a guest player due to injury or conflict.

But I can say that there are some great organizations in the state. Top of my head is: Monarchs, InteGRITy, Lightening, and the Heartbreakers. They all field 18u or 16u competitive teams. Some have 2 levels of team at that age group actually. And I call them organizations because not only do they field teams at most age levels, it also feels like a cohesive organization. You'll sometimes see the 16u girls cheering on the 12u team, for example.

But like I said, I'm not TOO familiar with that age group, but those are the orgs that you routinely see fielding good, disciplined, competitive teams. There are many others, but if your DD is looking for A level play, I'm not sure of many close to the DC/MD line (I'll admit that we're up closer to the PA border)

I'm sure there are some teams closer to you, but not sure if they meet that A level of play that you're looking for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At the high school level, I've found most of the more competitive teams are unfortunately not very close to DC. Think Urbana and Clarksburg or even neighboring counties. Having said that, Bethesda and Rockville have clubs, but in recent years, they haven't been powerhouses. So, if you are willing to drive farther for practices, you will have a better chance of finding a team that will offer more recruitment exposure.

Yup, the Clarksburg Crush is probably the closest competitive team to the DC line, in MD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My family is new to travel softball and I'm looking to get the lay of the land as far as local play and teams go. Anyone aware of any relevant discussion boards? I've found a few, but they seem out of date with few, if any, recent posts.

Thanks for any info you can offer.

This is a Maryland group but I am sure you can find something similar for VA if that's closer. DC doesnt have many travel teams.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/MarylandFastpitch

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

This is a Maryland group but I am sure you can find something similar for VA if that's closer. DC doesnt have many travel teams.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/MarylandFastpitch

Thanks much...I'll give it a shot!

[Anonymous]

OP, are you looking for B or A? I was thinking her current team is C and you are looking for B based on your statement that she is unlikely to play D1 in college. A teams are generally filled with future D1 girls. And if you want to play on an A team, you are unlikely to find something 15 minutes from home. These teams don't turn over a lot of players so they may be looking to fill a spot or two and are generally looking for a specific position. B teams are everywhere. A PP listed some good organizations in Maryland.

[Anonymous]

Virginia and Surrounding States Travel Fastpitch forum on FB is probably the most active. The moderator is Richmond-based and there's a lot of discussions that are oriented to central VA, however NOVA and the Maryland suburbs of DC are well-represented there as well. It has more than 8,500 members. In a month or so it will be flooded with posts about upcoming tryouts in July.

Shenandoah Valley Sportsnation is another FB forum. It's run by the SportsNation sanction and is more oriented to the Valley (Harrisonburg/Waynesboro). Again, there's NOVA represented and tryout information will be posted there. However, it is definitely more oriented to Western Virginia.

I can also answer questions about organizations/teams in Northern VA if you want to know something specific.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - are you in MD or VA? I know the lay of the land a bit in MD, if you have any questions

And I know Virginia, at least at the 10U/12U levels.

Thanks to you both. I'm in DC, closer to MD, but close-in VA isn't a stretch. DD is in her later HS years and only recently made the switch to softball. She's got a trainer who's also a coach and can be helpful with teams to some extent if needed. Her trainer says she's got college potential (though I don't imagine D1, which is her preference for college environment, but not for level of athletic commitment).

So SB isn't likely to happen in college, but I'd like her to have options if she wants to try for it. To that end, I want to get her on a solid team for more experience and exposure. She tried out for just one team and made it, but it looks like the team is now playing at a less competitive level than they were before she tried out. If she's capable, I'd like her to play at a higher level. (I think the team may be losing a lot of girls after the summer, so she may need to try to find a new team for the fall anyway.)

Given all that (and the fact that I know approximately nothing about SB), I'm looking to figure out what her best options are, which teams have good players and great coaching, who does best at college exposure and recruitment, and what we should be thinking about now to position her well. And even if college isn't in her future, I really want her to find a good team that's fun for her. She's not a super-social kid, so I think level of competitiveness is a place where she gets enjoyment. In the end, though, what's most important to her is that she just gets to play.

Thanks again for any thoughts you can share.

The most competitive teams will put the "travel" in "travel." There's really only one or two tournaments in the area that attract elite showcase teams (which is what you sound like you are looking for). That's the Glory Spring Tournament, which just happened next month. That attracts teams from across the mid-Atlantic. The Glory organization also sponsors another one in July, but it's not quite as big of a draw.

The best organizations around here will go play PGF in Ohio or Tennessee, or they'll go to the Colorado Sparkler tournament. That's organizations like the Shamrocks, EC Bullets, Shooting Stars. The other, more local teams, might take on one or more challenge tournaments but are more likely to stick around playing local USA and USSSA-sponsored tournaments (NSA doesn't really seem to be here anymore -- they're down in Williambsurg. Top Gun is down south of Richmond, SportsNation is Richmond/VA Beach, Harrisonburg, and PGF/Alliance really isn't a presence in the area, although the Alliance is starting to partner with USA and the Glory Spring Tournament was a qualifier).

Also keep in mind that most HS-aged teams are just now starting to play since the HS season is ending (it's playoffs now).

Finally, the Loudoun Storm just folded, so there's gonna be a dozen or so girls looking for spots on existing teams in the next month.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, are you looking for B or A? I was thinking her current team is C and you are looking for B based on your statement that she is unlikely to play D1 in college. A teams are generally filled with future D1 girls. And if you want to play on an A team, you are unlikely to find something 15 minutes from home. These teams don't turn over a lot of players so they may be looking to fill a spot or two and are generally looking for a specific position. B teams are everywhere. A PP listed some good organizations in Maryland.

When she tried out it was a B team, but now it looks like it'll be C. I was hoping after a spring HS season and the summer season with a B team we could see if she's ready for A during fall-season tryouts.

As far as the D1 situation, I really have no basis to judge whether it's a realistic possibility for her or not. (Again, I really know NOTHING about softball.) Her trainer didn't specify when she said thought DD had some college potential, and I assumed she was just trying to be encouraging. (That said, the trainer brought it up on her own, not DD, as I understand it.)

Anyway, I don't want to be a parent who overestimates their "snowflake," and have been assuming since she came to SB late it wouldn't be possible to really catch up to the most talented players. I also come travel from the perspective of a different sport with a flooded market (or whatever), where even the highest level travel players (outside of those who make national teams, etc.) are a dime a dozen and don't necessarily have D1 prospects. I assumed that was true for A-level softball teams, but maybe less so?

In any case, thank you and everyone else chiming in. This is all really helpful, and exactly the sort of info I've been hoping to get from hanging out in a dedicated travel SB forum.