13 yr old becomes youngest ever to verbal to UCLA

[Mark H]

What I do know, past and present, is this kid is an exceptional athlete right now!

Of that there is absolutely NO doubt.

[exD1dad]

jjsqueeze the naysayers voicing their opinion that a 13 year old shouldn't verbal isn't jealousy of the Firecracker org, trust me. Most of the people that have taken that stance have DD's in college now & realize the toll the game has taken on their children's bodies (& we haven't heard from Sam yet ) These older been there seen that fathers have experience watching kids change majors, coaches leave, kids burn out, make bad choices all the bad stuff yet are still wishing this young lady well & pointing out the land mines she still has to navigate before she even signs her NLI. Nothing wrong with that & others should listen to their advice.

It's totally win win for UCLA & this young superstar still has a lot to learn & a whole 4 years of high school before she even steps foot on campus as an undergrad. That's a long time, trust me.

[Pale Rider]

Lets face it, its ridiculous and getting worse...
Ive had several big name schools coaches tell me that...
and admit they're their own worst enemies...
NCAA is gong take some action sooner or later

I'm not dissing the kid in any way, its the nature of this beast...
She would have had other opportunities at other places she may like better...
Will she now? I know its just a verbal...
She's to young to make that long term decision...

[jjsqueeze]

I did not mean it was jealousy of the FC org at all. I was making a joke that of all the things to complain about, her being and FC and not on my DDs team was the one valid thing to complain about.


My point is that a 13 year old pitcher has an opportunity to have her dream come true, that is awesome, sniping about the pitfalls that she faces between here and the finish line, about how a girl her age can't know what she wants, etc. just feels like hating on her and dragging it down a bit. I am sure her family has done their homework and are making the best decision for their kid. To be honest, I doubt I would counsel my kids to make the same decision, but that is mostly based on my lack of desire to ever have to try to find parking in LA.


I repeat, a 13 year old pitcher was verbally offered scholarship money to play a sport she loves for one of the best academic and softball playing schools in the world. This is a fantastic thing, period, end of story, No qualifiers needed it is simply great news for her and her family.

[msbdg1401]

Who is Lexi's pitching coach?

[tbjd33]

I did not mean it was jealousy of the FC org at all. I was making a joke that of all the things to complain about, her being and FC and not on my DDs team was the one valid thing to complain about.


My point is that a 13 year old pitcher has an opportunity to have her dream come true, that is awesome, sniping about the pitfalls that she faces between here and the finish line, about how a girl her age can't know what she wants, etc. just feels like hating on her and dragging it down a bit. I am sure her family has done their homework and are making the best decision for their kid. To be honest, I doubt I would counsel my kids to make the same decision, but that is mostly based on my lack of desire to ever have to try to find parking in LA.


I repeat, a 13 year old pitcher was verbally offered scholarship money to play a sport she loves for one of the best academic and softball playing schools in the world. This is a fantastic thing, period, end of story, No qualifiers needed it is simply great news for her and her family.

Stop trying to convince the masses. Not matter how you or anyone paints it they feel it's wrong regardless of how positive it is for DD's. Why not be positive about ANYTHING good for DD's and their education. It's a plus no matter what anyone says I'm my opinion.

[Sam]

The kid must be a phenomenal talent. It's too bad that all the adults around her have conspired to exploit her.

I wonder how many of you would commit your 13 year old to marry a very good looking young man when she graduates from HS, who will make sure she wants for nothing.....and your child tells you that she loves him. I would tell my kid that she was too young to make such a decision....that she can't even drive a car for three more years.

I can understand parents getting overwhelmed by the attention and opportunity presented for their child. I will never understand coaches who use their school's prestige to take advantage of these people. The coaches are the big pieces of $hit in these scenarios.

Now this kid will carry around the label of being that kid......having to live up to unreasonable expectations leveled on her by coaches, teammates, opponents, spectators, the media, and her prospective college. Quite a load for a young kid.

This is a sick community of obsessive narcissists.

[tbjd33]

The kid must be a phenomenal talent. It's too bad that all the adults around her have conspired to exploit her.

I wonder how many of you would commit your 13 year old to marry a very good looking young man when she graduates from HS, who will make sure she wants for nothing.....and your child tells you that she loves him. I would tell my kid that she was too young to make such a decision....that she can't even drive a car for three more years.

I can understand parents getting overwhelmed by the attention and opportunity presented for their child. I will never understand coaches who use their school's prestige to take advantage of these people. The coaches are the big pieces of $hit in these scenarios.

Now this kid will carry around the label of being that kid......having to live up to unreasonable expectations leveled on her by coaches, teammates, opponents, spectators, the media, and her prospective college. Quite a load for a young kid.

This is a sick community of obsessive narcissists.

What's the number of 13 year old girls which have no hope or future? Girls which parents could care less about her future? Where is the common sense in the upside instead of pounding sand on the "possibility" of a wrong choice?

What smart remark do you have for those daughters? I bet the MILLIONS of those young girls would kill to have an opportunity such as this. You know... The glass is not half empty!

[CheckWriter]

Sam pulls no punches. Hadn't even thought of that perspective. Makes one think of a young lady not that long ago that committed to AZ that was to be THAT girl.

Again, I sincerely hope she stays healthy. I think it is up to her future college coach to step in and work with the TB coach to limit her innings. Some good guidelines here:
http://www.andrewsinstitute.com/InjuryPrevention/STOPSportsInjuries.aspx

College ball is physically brutal. The training and recovery model has not adapted to the wear and tear that girls arrive on their college campuses with. It is not based on girls practicing daily from the age of 8. Hope her pitching coach will help guide her well.

Younger of two DDs will play her senior year of ball starting in a few weeks. Hopefully will be recovered from her latest injury to contribute. Both DDs did/will graduate in 4 years with the majors they wanted (older DD earned two separate degrees, not a double major).

I wish all your DDs a fun and a mostly healthy 4 years of softball, whether they verbal at 13, 17, play a year or two of JC, whatever their path is. Try to keep it fun as long as possible, it is a tough road.

My $0.02, thinly veiled jealousy or not.

[jjsqueeze]

Comparing a college choice to arranged marriage? WTF. UCLA is a great school, offers a world class education in a wide variety of fields. Deciding to VERBAL there at an early age to give your daughter an inside track is a great thing to have in your pocket at 13. Maybe it comes to fruition, maybe it doesn't, but it sure as hell doesn't hurt to have a scholarship offer on the table (even a verbal) at 13.

It's a verbal for God sakes, it is not binding, If the kid decides at 16 she wants to study something that UCLA does not offer, or she decides that maybe she does not want to go through the grind of playing for a top 10 D1 program and focus on academics more, She can back out and go to any school in the nation and say she was a verbal commit to UCLA and get a look on the spot.

Every kid is different and every family is different, just assuming she is being taken advantage of or is being pressured, or will be crushed under the weight of the expectations is arrogant. We don't know the specifics of the family, maybe three generations of her family has already gone to UCLA so it was decided a long time ago she would go there anyway. Maybe she is pressuring her parents to go there. Maybe she likes bears a lot.

Her parents sure as hell don't deserve to be criticized (either directly or indirectly) by a bunch of people who don't know them or their situation.