Time to Turn It Up

I put this photo of the amazing Danielle Lawrie at the top of this post because she represents "turning it up" in a big, big way. Her performance at the Women's College World Series was nothing short of spectacular.

We're more than halfway through our U12 softball season and the team has progressed nicely in many ways - we're 7-1 and clearly the best team in the league when we're able to throw strikes and stay awake on defense.

At this point, I'm starting to lock in players to give them specific improvement at certain positions - the girls have earned their spots in the lineup and on the field by their performance, attendance and attitudes.

I'll start backing off quite a bit during games from here on out, minimizing my in-game coaching as much as possible to give them a chance to put what they have been learning into practice.

That said, there are 2 specific messages I'm delivering from here to the end of the season:

1. Errors... there is not much we can do at this point to avoid physical errors, but mental errors are not acceptable. This means girls need to pay attention to signals, be alert at the plate, work the count and know where they are going on defense both with the ball and with their bodies!
2. Of our 3 season goals (have fun, learn the game and compete), now's the time to compete their hardest. This does not mean that our focus is on winning, but that our effort in trying to be the best is important - more important than winning.

I believe however, that we are in fact the best team in the league this year and if we can minimize mental errors, execute on the field and focus on competing, we won't lose again this year.

Here's hoping!