Active DMV Travel Fastpitch Forums?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: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.

Thanks! I'll give those a shot too.

If she's a good enough to make and A team and she wants to pursue it, a farther-out team wouldn't at all be out of the question.

I do wonder if you know anything about how Arlington Impact is. Also wondering about Mt. Vernon Magic and MD Stars National if anyone knows anything.

[Anonymous]

Parent of a 16U A-level player here. Regarding your kid's D1 potential, is she over 5'7" and extremely fast and athletic, or does she regularly hit home runs? Is she a standout defender at a specific position? If you can't answer yes to these, forget D1. College recruiting for the top level players starts by sophomore year (unofficially) and your DS should have been playing A-level ball a couple of years, reaching out to coaches of schools she's interested in, etc. They won't come find her on a B team, or even on an A team in the DMV. The standout players colleges look for generally come from the south and southwest where they play year-round. DMV A teams have to travel to far-away invitational tournaments to get their player's noticed by college recruiters, not USSSA. High school accolades like All Conference won't get them far, because high school ball is considered not as difficult at travel ball (mostly due to weaker pitching).

If she's not challenged on her current B team, by all means look for an A team to be able to play better competition. Don't assume these teams are all D1 potential. Most A team players will be headed for D3, Club softball, or no softball after all the drama and burnout from travel softball!

[Anonymous]

Regarding teams and tryouts, most had tryouts in early fall for the fall and spring/summer seasons. That said, travel softball is rife with deluded parents who are always looking for a better team for their superstar kid, or kids who can't get along interpersonally with their teammates, so there is always movement mid-year to other "grass is greener" teams offering more college recruiting potential, a more coveted position, more playing time, etc. There is very little team loyalty among a subset of players and families. Some teams lose their coaches and have to fold. So do peruse the Facebook groups looking for private tryouts and guest player opportunities. If she can impress as a guest player, she can get an invite to join the team.