Dump a bucket a balls along the backstop. Have the catcher start in her normal catching stance at home plate, and have the pitcher stand about halfway between the mound and the plate. When you say “GO”, the catcher should turn around, go for a ball, and quickly turn and make the throw to home plate.

The pitcher should practice receiving the ball and making the tag at the plate. This drill should improve the speed and accuracy of the catcher’s throws. It will also help the pitcher get comfortable making the play at the plate.

The player will start on their knees. The coach will softly bounce the ball to her and she will dive to try to stop or catch it. Then she will quickly get to her feet ready to make a throw. This should be done to both the right and left side of the player.

By doing this drill, the players will get comfortable diving after a ball, and the fear of injury will diminish. Be sure to really emphasize the importance of getting to their feet after catching the ball.

Set up a complete infield, complete with pitcher and catcher. Place a runner at each base, including home. The coach should stand by home plate and hit a slow grounder to the pitcher. The runner at home should run out of the batters box towards first base. The other runners advance to the next base, including the runner at third trying to score at home.

Depending on where and how hard the ball is hit to the pitcher, a decision needs to be made on whether to go home with the ball, or turn and throw to first base.

The idea behind this drill is to use a different pitcher for each inning, forcing each pitcher to only focus on getting their three outs. You can do this drill in either a practice setting such as batting practice, or even in a scrimmage versus another team.

This drill also can serve as good practice for your hitters. Because the hitter will never see the same pitcher twice, they will constantly have to adapt to the new pitcher.

It all starts with playing catch…

One of the first things you will do at your tryout will be to warm up by playing catch. Don’t treat this game of catch like you would if it was one of your ordinary practices. Even while you are just warming up, coaches and evaluators will be watching your every move.

Use good form when catching the ball. Be sure to use quick hands when making the transfer from glove to hand. Always throw the ball hard back to your partner. There is no need to throw it 100mph, but definitely don’t lob it back. Also, make sure your throws are accurate. There is nothing worse than making a bunch of bad throws during warm ups. If you can’t hit your partner in the chest during warm ups, how are you supposed to do it during a game?

You are always being watched…

At a tryout, there could be someone watching your every move, all the time. A good example of this is during the hitting portion of the tryouts. If you are in the field shagging fly balls, don’t lob the ball back into the infield. Someone could be timing your throws with a radar gun. Fire the ball back into the infield as if you were playing a game. The coaches are always looking for a reason to take you on the team (or a reason to cut you), and showing you have a strong arm is a great way to impress.

Be a good, coachable teammate

One thing a coach looks for almost as much as athletic ability, is the ability to be a good teammate and being coachable. It does a coach no good if they can’t coach you. If a coach tells you change something with your mechanics, do it. Don’t ignore their advice, even if you disagree with them. Show them that you can listen and are willing to learn.

Be a good teammate. Yes, you are competing with the other girls there for a spot on the team, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get along with them. If a girl makes a nice play, tell her so. Likewise, if a girl makes a mistake, pick her up and tell her she will get the next one!

Hustle

Probably the most important thing you can do at a tryout is to hustle. Don’t ever let a coach see you walking on the field. Jog on and off the field, sprint to first base on every hit even if its a simple ground out, and don’t come in last during the warm up jog.

Hustling is something that everybody can do, no matter their athletic ability. It is a choice you make as a player, and it shows that you care about what you are doing. This will stand out more to a coach than anything else you could possibly do.

Good luck at your next tryout! Keep this tips in your mind, but most importantly, have fun. Softball is meant to be a fun game, so make it that way!

Info Sports – Youth Softball Tournament Locator

This website is aimed towards youth leagues. Upon visiting the site, you will see a few options to choose from. You can either enter your own tournament into the directory, find a tournament for your team, or to enter your team as a “last minute” choice.

For our purposes, we want to select the option of finding a tournament for your team (the second one). You will then be prompted to register your team in the database. Once you do this, you will be able to search for tournaments for your team to play in. You can also opt to receive notifications when a tournament is listed in the database that meets certain criterion that you set.

SoftballTournaments.com

This site is a very large database of tournaments all over the country, and all types of softball. To begin, look at the lefthand toolbar and select the “Find Tournaments” link.

Here, you can choose to either search by state or by tournament type. If you choose a specific state on the map, you will be presented with all the tournaments listed within that state. This includes both youth and adult leagues, slow and fast pitch.

For a more specific search, you will want to choose the second search option and search for tournaments based on certain options: Women’s, Men’s, Co-ed, Youth, Senior, Fastpitch, and Slowpitch. You can select multiple options, for example “Youth + Fastpitch”. Next, you need to pick a state from the drop down list (or Canada Province). Once you do this, you will be presented with a specific list of tournaments with the options that you selected for that specific state.

Both of these websites are great for finding a tournament for your team. The internet has made it very easy to find tournaments, so take advantage of great websites such as these to find fun tournaments for your team!

Many towns offer their own community softball leagues for adults, and these can be both fun and competitive. The best way to find out what your town offers for adult softball is to contact them directly. Talk to someone from the local community center and pick up a brochure if they have one. These leagues are usually co-ed so it can be  a fun way to spend time with your spouse!

Slow Pitch Organizations

• ABA Softball League
• Amateur Softball Association of America
• Dixie Softball
• ISA (Independent Softball Association)
• NSA (National Softball Association)
• USSSA
• World Softball League

Fast Pitch Organizations

• ASAA
• AFA
• ISA
• NAIA
• NANFA
• NSA
• USSSA

All of these leagues may not be available in your area, so look around to find which ones are. No matter where you end up playing, have fun with it!

Pony League

Pony softball has several levels of softball within their organization for girls ages 5-18. The leagues are broken down into slow-pitch or fast-pitch. Pony softball is broken down into age levels. Shetland is for girls ages 6 and under, Pinto is for 8 and under, Mustang is for 10 and under, Bronco is for 12 and under, Pony is for 14 and under, Colt is for 16 and under, and Palomino is for athletes 18 and under. As you can see, Pony league offers a great opportunity for girls to play both fast and slow pitch softball at all ages. Check out their website for more information.

ASA (Amateur Softball Association of America)

ASA Softball has about 3 million participants nationwide. They have players of all ages, but their youth program has 1.3 million players nationwide. The youth program is the fastest growing sector of the ASA organization. For more information on ASA, check out their website.

Little League

Little League is most often thought of as being a baseball league, but they also have a softball sector. It is a well run program that is found nationwide. Many girls participate in Little League and it has been around for quite some time. For more information on Little League Softball, check out their website.

These leagues all have one thing in common…they all provide girls an opportunity to play softball. No matter which league you choose, make sure you have fun! Softball is meant to be fun, and these leagues provide a fun environment in which to develop your softball skills. Good luck!

The success of a softball player begins with the basics. Having sound fundamentals will allow a player to advance in other areas of their game. Poor fundamental mechanics will end up hurting the player down the road and inhibit them from progressing to the next level.

To practice your fundamental skills, there are hundreds of different drills out there that you can do to practice a certain area of your game. Check the “Drills” tab at the top of this page for some fun and beneficial softball drills. Also, a quick Google search will yield pages and pages of great softball drills which you can use to improve your fundamentals.

Listen to your coaches. At times, players may think they know what is best . However, the knowledge and advice of an experienced coach is something which should not be ignored. They have been playing the game far longer than you have, and will often have personal experiences which they can use to help you succeed as a player. Listen to what they have to say before you decide to ignore their advice.

Take things one step at a time. If you are a beginner player, don’t expect to become Jennie Finch overnight. Set goals for yourself so that you can take small steps in the right direction. It doesn’t do any good to try and become a superstar right away…it simply cannot be done. Set both short, and long-term goals that you would like to achieve. Setting goals is a proven way to achieve the results that you desire.

The most important key to succeeding in softball is to have fun. There is no use in playing if you are not having fun. The only way you will improve is if you enjoy what you are doing. Every day that you play softball should be something to look forward to. Sure we all have days where we might not be as excited, but the feeling of hitting that ball or making the clutch play should be something that is fun for you as a softball player!

Raffle

Organizing a raffle lottery is a classic yet successful way to easily make some money for your program. Offer a grand prize such as a new TV, or even a portion of the proceeds. Sell raffle tickets for $5 or $10 to family members, friends, and neighbors. If they know it is supporting a good cost, many people will be glad to help out.

Host an Event

Another way to raise funds for your program is by holding an event that you sell tickets for. Examples could be a golf outing, cookout, or dance party. A portion of the tickets would pay for the costs associated with the event, and the remaining money would go towards your program!

Car Wash

Having a car wash is a really fun way to spend an afternoon fundraising for your team. Talk to your local bank, they will often let you use their parking lot on a Sunday afternoon to have your carwash. Gather up a bunch of sponges and towels, and charge $5 per car. Have some of the players stand on the street corner with signs advertising the car wash. Your team can easily make several hundred dollars while having a fun time washing cars.

Coupon Books/Cards

Often times, local companies will sell coupon books or cards in bulk which you can then resell for a profit. Pizza places, sandwhich shops, etc usually have some sort of coupon program which groups such as yourself can purchase in bulk for a discounted price. You can then mark up the price of the coupon book and resell them to family, friends, and neighbors. In the end, everyone saves money. And who doesn’t like pizza?