Which has more pressure?

I believe high school softball has more pressure built into it than travel ball..especially when 2 good teams are playing and just about any conference game where one team could conceivably beat the other. I know this may hit a nerve with some so let me explain. There is no doubt in my mind there is more pressure in high school ball than showcase ball. I am talking about the 16 and 18 year old age levels. There is no consequence of losing and there is another game an hour away in showcase ball. If you have a bad game you can make up for it very quickly and it doesn't cost your team a play off spot or seeding spot.

In high school the athletes are playing in front of their peers and fellow students, friends..etc. I know this can put extra pressure on them. In travel ball it is usually just in front of both teams' parents...no big deal to the travel ball player. In high school you are always in a one and done scenario. One loss can really change a highly ranked (conference or state level) team's year. I would like to hear from some of the high school coaches that also coach travel ball. I would say they lose sleep before games against someone they are supposed to beat in high school ball. If they do get upset it could really cause seeding problems down the road or even prevent them from making the playoffs.

Now, there are exceptions to every rule. If a tb team was playing for a National championship and had a legit chance to win it there would be a huge amount of pressure...I am sure the Cardinal players and coaches could attest to this, but this is about the only pressure packed scenario in 16/18 tb in my opinion. Yes, I guess qualifiers and tb states are pressure packed to some degree, but I would say it would not compare to high school playoff games.

 

pressure

I agree, there is in my opinon more pressure in hs ball. Loose one or two in conf. play and you could be out and loose one in the playoffs and your home, BUT the competition is not even close to tb. You may play one or two games a year in hs that are tough but in tb everyone is tough. jmo

 

HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM !!!

I think I understand your point,but let's just imagine you have invited a college coach to come down ,and watch you play in a showcase,and you have a bad weekend...there is a possibility that he or she want come and watch you play again, and so goes the scholarship possibilities,etc....I think both high school and TB has its advantages and disadvantages of pressure situations...to say one has more pressure over the other...I really can't SAY !!!


GURU

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HS ball pressure? Yes, but not the kind you're talking about

Here in the east HS softball is virtually an afterthought. My daughter played in a 4A program that produced several D1 players (and do mean PLAYERS, not signees) in a short time. She knew most of the girls on her team didn't feel the way she did about the game. She gave it 100%. The pressure came from the fact that many of her teammates didn't love the game. By her senior year she was wise enough not to become too emotionally invested because she knew her teammates were not and, ultimately (and fortunately) the team's performance would have little impact on her future.

TB was a different story. She knew she was being evaluated from the minute she walked in the ballpark at Lexington/Florence/Rock Hill/Plantation until the last bag was packed on Sunday. Every pitch and every at bat mattered. She loved that. Fortunately, she played with a group of girls who all embraced this reality. While the pressure was great it was positive pressure as they all worked together for the same goal.

Having been to N Davidson once I can see where there might be lots of pressure there, especially if it's important to be able to talk about the 'glory days' if you're still a local many years from now. . . . sort of like Texas HS football. Nothing wrong with that but just not a priority for lots of people.

 

Let's talk

How many conferences have more than three really tough teams in them? In most conferences, don't the top three teams make the playoffs? Will one conference lost knock U out of contention for states? Isn't the real pressure once U have made the playoffs and single elimination occurs? In the past five years how many teams have gone to Raleigh multiple times?
Guess pressure is a relative term as U could feel pressure playing against friends but their team may not be very good. U may feel pressure playing against a certain coach, a certain player, or just the fact it is a conference game. U may have a team that always haunts U.
Travel ball if U play it at the highest level all teams are good and capable of beating each other anytime. College coaches are watching, friends are on many other teams, maybe HS team mates, single elimination after pool events, ASA qualifier, win or no Nationals, as Guru says one chance to be seen by a coach, will coach let me play today? Yep, pressure from all sides and in all sports but if we can keep the fun there, makes it much easier to handle, agree? Smile and enjoy playing the game!

 

Let Me Add !!!

I also know some kids that handle pressure very well, and nothing seems to shaken them.....call it cocky or call it confidence....who knows, but they just seem to roll with the punches in either setting and continue doing what they do best playing at a level of superiority!!!


GURU

 

travel ball is much more enjoyable if YOU KNOW THAT YOU BELONG and realize that an 0-4 or an error is meaningless in the larger context. If you dont realize this then its worse.

 

explain please....thanks

 

well lets try it this way.... most of the TB problems I have witnessed over the years arise from issues with player and parental confidence in whether they really belong or not; whether they are good enough to really play in college; the unknowns of what the whole TB/recruitment/showcase process will hold. Plz note things can and do change based on talent, commitment and work ethic... take from someone who has and IS seeing this unfold. We are at 16U/18U and a lot of top 12u talent isnt on the field anymore.

When you couple this with the state of most folks finances and the stress playing TB puts on them as a result and the fact that a person who may or may not have a bias/agenda is SUBJECTIVELY evaluating whether your player has the ability, work ethic and attitude to play for his or her travel ball team then you can see where this leads.

Listen, and this goes for everyone out there who is playing at 14U and lower. I am fortunate to be in a great situation right now in an organization with great leadership and coaches who appreciate what my daughter brings to the table and who are honest about what the possibilities are for her. They work tirelessly on her behalf to help her realize her dreams and she reciprocates by SACRIFICING to realize her goals. Before she reached this situation we had good and bad TB experiences. I will not go into the bad to any great extent here but I have seen a lot including but not limited to being lied to and told that my daughter wasn't good enough... as well as a nightmarish experience in MS ball. Well now things are breaking loose for her... and you bet it gives a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.

Let me just close by saying that if she has a dream just dont give up. Winston Churchill once gave a commencement address at a small university in MO, in the 50's I believe. It was the very soul of brevity and wisdom. Referencing the dark days of the battle of Britain he rose and said "Never Give Up!, never, Never, NEver, NEVer, NEVEr, NEVER GIVE UP!"

Thanks to Rodney/John/Toot and Blue.

 

Agreed !!!

Very well said !!!

Guru