How bad is D2 and 3?

[nucular]

My step DD is currently playing (on scholarship) for a D2 school on the East Coast. We are very happy with the choice that she made. Her decision to attend this school was based on the academic quality of the school the and the opportunities that she was offered.
In her freshman year she was on the Dean's list for both semesters and was named 1st Team All Conference. She is 5'2", lefty slapper and ended with a .336 batting average complete with a 2 run game winning home run!. All of the girls that we personally know who have gone on to D1 schools, are doubting their decisions and are struggling academically. It is a smaller college community and she is excelling. Softball is the vehicle to acquire the education, not the other way around. I believe that DD's choice to attend a D2 was the very best choice, no regrets.

[Informal]

This is 100 percent about what she wants.

Now of course if this was a your son, and he was a stud QB you would simply reply:
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FRICKING MIND!!!!??"

[CheckWriter]

In an ideal world she decides based on where she would want to go to school if she had a "career ending" injury during the first week of practice of her freshman year.

Get the occasional posts about DD being too good for the team and going nuts because the other girls can't execute. Posting dad makes it sound like it so bad it is ruining the whole college experience (maybe dad's experience is being ruined?). I guess the trick there is knowing herself well enough - not so easy at 16 or 17 (or even earlier these days).

I agree that:

there is a D3 school that she really likes and they are in love with her

seems to make the OP a rhetorical question.

[Blind Squirrel]

My step DD is currently playing (on scholarship) for a D2 school on the East Coast. We are very happy with the choice that she made. Her decision to attend this school was based on the academic quality of the school the and the opportunities that she was offered.
In her freshman year she was on the Dean's list for both semesters and was named 1st Team All Conference. She is 5'2", lefty slapper and ended with a .336 batting average complete with a 2 run game winning home run!. All of the girls that we personally know who have gone on to D1 schools, are doubting their decisions and are struggling academically. It is a smaller college community and she is excelling. Softball is the vehicle to acquire the education, not the other way around. I believe that DD's choice to attend a D2 was the very best choice, no regrets.

That may be your personal experience but it certainly is at odds with mine WRT the kids I know playing D1. Some kids don't like the fit but I suspect that occurs at every level. I will say that the academic support that my daughter receives is more than sufficient for her to not be even close to struggling academically so far. And BTW, far from doubting their decisions, a significant percentage of the D1 kids I know are having a great time and I know a few that don't go home during the summer as they prefer to stay in their college's area.

John

[Gone in 2.6]

Guess I'll have to play devil's advocate on this one again.

I know it makes us feel grounded, level headed and responsible to espouse that it's EXCLUSIVELY about the education and not the softball. This however, especially if you are playing D1, isn't very practical in real world application in many cases.

If you're playing a sport in college, a huge chunk of your time is spent doing things related to and with people involved with your sport. If you are unhappy with your softball situation, it could likely impact your entire college experience in a negative way. The key is to make a BALANCED decision.

While it sounds great on a greeting card, "It's ALL about the education" without just as careful consideration to the softball side of things, could put you in a very miserable a situation. The same way the unwise method of picking your school based on their ESPN Poll ranking could.

Stan the Caddy, whatever school your dd picks, it might be prudent to make sure the level of play is at least SOMEWHAT relevant to her skilll level. While these threads commonly warn people about checking their ego lest they risk their DD riding the pine at UCLA (or whatever ego stroking sports factory) for 4 years, it doesn't seem that much thought is given to playing at a level of play too far BELOW a player's skill level.

An extreme example to better illustrate the point.

Take a player like a Kristy Fox (or insert any uber talented, hard nosed, DRIVEN, gamer). It's my personal opinion that a player like that, skill wise and MINDSET wise, if they chose a small low RPI school for the academics without giving proper consideration to the sports aspect of the experience, could likely strangle her teammates before the end of fall conditioning of their freshman year.

Make a balanced decision and try to find the TOTAL Package that fits your dd's needs.

[3Bsnag]

I'm so glad you said that G2.6, especially since you are now speaking from a year of college experience.

Everyone lectures on picking the right academic fit and "if you had a season-ending injury on the first day of practice...". Those are important points, but there is more to the story for some players. And this subject piggybacks on recruiting to a point.

You will spend 3-4 hours a day in different classes vs 5-10 with your same teammates, 4 or so of those hours including your coaches. If she's spending that much more time with the team, the right athletic fit is also crucial, not optional.

[Stan the Caddy]

All relatively good stuff here, thanks. Despite popular belief, I am not a total moron. I know it's about the education and, as I said in my original post, I know that in ten years it won't matter anyway.

Stan the Caddy, whatever school your dd picks, it might be prudent to make sure the level of play is at least SOMEWHAT relevant to her skilll level. While these threads commonly warn people about checking their ego lest they risk their DD riding the pine at UCLA (or whatever ego stroking sports factory) for 4 years, it doesn't seem that much thought is given to playing at a level of play too far BELOW a player's skill level.

This is more what I was asking. DD has worked hard for 14 years and she has reached a certain level. She's not a UCLA player, but she's not a Joe's Community College player either. I was just trying to figure out the level of play in D2 and D3. I would like for her to finish her career on a high note, rather than being frustrated playing with a bunch of girls out there for some exercise. Honestly I just don't know the level of play in those divisions because I've never seen them.

It turns out that it may not matter because, again, despite popular belief, money is an issue (I only did one episode of Seinfeld, plus the finale) and one of the D1 schools is nearly free to her and she is actually starting to lean toward that one anyway.

I'll update as the decision making goes on, if anyone's interested.

[Joe]

.....I would like for her to finish her career on a high note, rather than being frustrated playing with a bunch of girls out there for some exercise. Honestly I just don't know the level of play in those divisions because I've never seen them.

Without seeing "the level of play in those divisions", you've certainly dismissed them by asking, "how bad is D2 and D3". I mean..."how bad"??? Maybe bad enough to kick your DD's ass on the dirt....and maybe real "bad enough" to kick her ass in the classroom where it counts.

And then your follow-up is very well done: "being frustrated playing with a bunch of girls..." Get a clue dude...

Sounds like to me you need to stay out of the decision and let DD take over from here...

[playballagain]

WE can totally relate to what Stan is saying. Our DD is in the same boat.
Probably the "better" school is D2 with little money and the other is D1 with A LOT
of money. DD's are only 16/17 and do need parental direction.
SO..will someone please answer THE Question...HOW good are these D2 programs??

[ASoftballfanatic]

True that D-III will usually be a more expensive route, but the quality of the education is also usually better. My daughter just graduated from a Top 25 softball D-III school. The teacher/student ratio is incredible! The learning and quality of the education is also! My daughter turned down D-I offers for this opportunity. It cost me a lot. And I wouldn't have it any other way. There were 5 other girls that graduated off of her travel team together. She had, BY FAR, the best college experience of them all! Including softball. Grab your favorite beverage to wash that ego down! It might just be the best decision you ever let your daughter make!