2 SPORT ATHLETES ?

[3Bsnag]

If your team doesn't allow them how is this presented to the family?
If you are a parent on a team that does allow them how do you feel about these players?
If you are a 2 sport athlete or a parent of do you catch grief for it?
Lastly is playing 2 sports at the same time a 12/14U issue only?

SB is main sport for us, but she plays vball, b-ball (this is last year because it does overlap too much), and cross country.

We have only missed 1 fall tournament day and 1 practice in a year, but yes we have caught grief for it. However, there is not one parent on our team that doubts our dedication. My kid practices on her own almost every day, we are the first to volunteer, and she has missed one practice in her entire softball career so far.

I think it's give and take on both ends. School coaches need to know that if it's a college look, we won't be there. There is also no missing SB during spring/summer season simply because it's qualifying time. Other than that, school sports take precedence even though it secretly killed me last fall to be in a gym when her team was playing.

On the other side, I think this is a great age to teach kids to prioritize. If volleyball games and softball practice fall on the same night for 10 weeks, I think they need to choose.

Kids have one shot at childhood, it should be fun. There are going to be "have to's" for the rest of their lives.

[Sftbll4ever]

First year in TB at 10u and dd played club commiekickball. Season is over and we decide to tell coach she is quiting as SB is her main sport and wants to play that. Couple weeks later, coach calls and begs dd to come back and will pay for all team fees. We agree, but with the understanding that softball is first priority and he agrees. 1 month later as we are getting ready to leave for Tenn., coach calls and says that he is tired of dd not coming to all the practices and demands that she show up next week for all practices. Told him no as we will be gone at Nats. Losses his mind and says he can't have her on the team. BUMMER!!!

DD was forced to make a decision at 10u. She did end up playing AYSO the next year and the TB coaches were ok with it as it was fall and they appreciated all the effort to make every practice. We missed 1 soccer game for TB tournament. Worked great.

Now we are getting ready for HS and dd makes VB team. We will see how that works out with getting all the pitching and hitting in during the week. Have already looked at the schedules and there are no showcase tournaments that she will miss with the 3 weekends of VB. We will see how this goes, but I feel if she can do all of it and keep her grades up, it will make her feel accomplished. She is working out and having fun. Does it get much better than that??

[Kat]

We found we caught more grief when my DD was younger then as she gets older. For several years she played AAU basketball, Club Volleyball and Softball. Mine was able to play all three until after her freshman year in high school and one club sport had to go it was just to hard for her to keep up her 4.0 in honors courses and make practices for all sports. There were weekends she had 8 hours of practice and then home and hit the books. She chose to eliminate club volleyball, although the coach tried to get us to commit this year, we talked alot, went round and round (in a nice manner) and in the end when she chose school basketball camp over a small club tournament he felt he couldn't live with that....I totally appreciated it and thanked him, and in a way was relieved that was finally over. We kept track of the team and went to watch them several times along with sending him texted messages on congrats on this accomplishment etc. The team did very well....at Reno when it concluded (very large vb tournament) I texted him a congrats his team finished 5th out of 84 teams...he gave my dd a very nice compliment, he said he wished she was there because they would have taken the whole thing....I felt it was nice and am glad where our relationship ended up no bitterness...forever he will think we made a mistake not going the volleyball way but in a complimentary manner. Now basketball is taking center stage, caught some grief from the basketball coach last year about not being commited to the school program, and she missed some school stuff because of gold softball. This year everyone worked together she got to make all but one gold tournament, she went on tour with the basketball team it went well. So much less grief then in the past. This next year her concentration is on basketball, we were approached by another coach for her to play with a team he is putting together (former gold coach, only coach to take a team from our area to gold nationals twice) I told him her concentration is on basketball, he was ok with it. He feels he can schedule around it if we promise we can go to nationals and nothing will interfer with that. That is definately a schedule she can keep so we shall see. He feels she has what it takes to go futher, his daughter played for Oregon State and he sees alot of his daughter in my DD. Both are, were catchers. His DD will be his catching coach. I see good things for my DD with both of these coaches she has lined up. Her basketball coach understands the softball thing and feels he can share her if she has a game vs say a practice both coaches know that basketball comes first but we will do everything in our power to get to all the extra stuff we can. I feel that DD would do very well in a good D2 program with basketball would be surprised to see her recruited by a good D1 school not that she isnt good but she has a few limitations, namely her height and I am a realistic parent. The new softball coach feels she could make a good D1 program in softball....we shall see. I personally I think a good D2 program and to be honest she also feels this is where she falls in softball we are both realistic I believe. She made varsity starter as a very young freshman in volleyball, basketball and softball and made all conference, all area teams since she started high school she is now 15 starting her junior year.....one more year and I will be very sad.......or in a nut house one or the other. Be fair to your coaches, tell them up front what everything is about, and then make your choices well....good luck