Lightning Q&A
Interested in finding out more about Lightning Softball? See below for commonly asked questions. If you have further questions, please contact our board President, Peter Fuqua.
Q. Who is eligible to try out?
A. Anyone registered within A VGSL.
Q. When are tryouts?
A. May 1st is the earliest date that we can hold a tryout session. This year we will hold one tryout session on May 5th. We expect to field teams in the 8u, 10u, 12u, and 14u for age groups in 2013.
Q. What age group does my daughter try out for?
A. ASA Junior Olympic Age Qualifications are:
A player born after 12/31/2003 is ELIGIBLE for 8-Under A player born after 12/31/2001 is ELIGIBLE for 10-Under A player born after 12/31/1999 is ELIGIBLE for 12-Under A player born after 12/31/1997 is ELIGIBLE for 14-Under
Q. What is covered at a tryout?
A. Ground balls, throwing, fly balls, hitting & bunting, pitching and catching. The tryouts are similar to our upper division tryouts.
Q. Are tryouts the only basis of the selection process?
A. No. The basis of the selection process includes performance at the try out, observation of league play, past Lightning performance and coach recommendations.
Q. What is the cost of the travel ball season?
A. It ranges from $250 to $450 a player. These costs are estimates and will vary by team. Travel costs will be additional and vary depending on where the tournaments are played.
Q. How long is the travel ball season?
A. The first tournament is usually over Memorial Day weekend ending the middle of July, with the possibility of making the ASA Western National Tournament the first week of August.
Q. What commitment is expected of me?
A. Full commitment of practices and tournaments.
Q. How are the teams selected?
A. The teams are selected by the coaching staff of the particular age group.
Q. How is travel ball different from league?
A. First, full commitment to practices and tournaments is expected. Second, only the players in the field bat and playing time is earned. Playing time on Saturday (pool play) is more equitable than Sunday(championship play). You will be playing among the top athletes within your age group and each team member is expected to step to the next level. In this atmosphere, your daughter will grow as a player and it will be evident in her level of play the following year.
Q. do we compete against?
A. There are three levels of ASA play:
• “A” ball is an independent organization that can recruit from any area.
• “B” ball is an organization that pulls girls from within their own league and the player must already be registered in the league.
• “C” ball is primarily the same as “B” ball, but is the second team for a league in a given age group. “C” teams usually compete against other “C” level teams and often play a more limited schedule than the league’s “B” team.
• AVGSL first fields a “B” team in a given age group and then fields a “C” team if there is sufficient interest from both players and coaches.
Q. Where do you typically play?
A. tournaments are within the bay area, with each team usually scheduling one overnight tournament. Overnight tournaments have been in locations such as Livermore, Napa, Tahoe, Soquel, etc.
Q. What is a typical tournament schedule?
A. 6-8 tournaments from Memorial Day through July or early August. Most
Q. What is a typical tournament like?
A. Saturday is “pool” play. Typical three games that “seed” the teams for Sunday(championship play). Who we play and at what time on Sunday is determined by this seeding. Sunday is usually single elimination and will vary from one to three/four games.
Q. What is a typical practice schedule?
A. In May the player’s commitment to their league team comes first for practices and games. Lightning practice will be fit in where possible. In May there will also be practices on Sundays. Once our AVGSL league is over the Lightning teams will generally practice on Tues., Wed., and Thur., but the final practice schedule is determined by the coaches.
Q. What are the benefits of travel ball?
A. A tournament will usually result in 5 or 6 games a weekend so that would be 30+ games for 6 tournaments to 40+ games for 8 tournaments. In addition to the number of games your daughter will play, she will be with experienced coaches who continually work on mechanics, coverages and strategic play. In this atmosphere, your daughter will no doubt perform at a higher level, which will be evident in her level of play the following year.
Q. What if we have a vacation already planned?
A. Please discuss with the appropriate head coach prior to committing to the team.
Q. How do you select coaches?
A. The AVGSL Board votes on the coaches via applications submitted for Head Coach.
Q. Who is eligible to try out?
A. Anyone registered within A VGSL.
Q. When are tryouts?
A. May 1st is the earliest date that we can hold a tryout session. This year we will hold one tryout session on May 5th. We expect to field teams in the 8u, 10u, 12u, and 14u for age groups in 2013.
Q. What age group does my daughter try out for?
A. ASA Junior Olympic Age Qualifications are:
A player born after 12/31/2003 is ELIGIBLE for 8-Under A player born after 12/31/2001 is ELIGIBLE for 10-Under A player born after 12/31/1999 is ELIGIBLE for 12-Under A player born after 12/31/1997 is ELIGIBLE for 14-Under
Q. What is covered at a tryout?
A. Ground balls, throwing, fly balls, hitting & bunting, pitching and catching. The tryouts are similar to our upper division tryouts.
Q. Are tryouts the only basis of the selection process?
A. No. The basis of the selection process includes performance at the try out, observation of league play, past Lightning performance and coach recommendations.
Q. What is the cost of the travel ball season?
A. It ranges from $250 to $450 a player. These costs are estimates and will vary by team. Travel costs will be additional and vary depending on where the tournaments are played.
Q. How long is the travel ball season?
A. The first tournament is usually over Memorial Day weekend ending the middle of July, with the possibility of making the ASA Western National Tournament the first week of August.
Q. What commitment is expected of me?
A. Full commitment of practices and tournaments.
Q. How are the teams selected?
A. The teams are selected by the coaching staff of the particular age group.
Q. How is travel ball different from league?
A. First, full commitment to practices and tournaments is expected. Second, only the players in the field bat and playing time is earned. Playing time on Saturday (pool play) is more equitable than Sunday(championship play). You will be playing among the top athletes within your age group and each team member is expected to step to the next level. In this atmosphere, your daughter will grow as a player and it will be evident in her level of play the following year.
Q. do we compete against?
A. There are three levels of ASA play:
• “A” ball is an independent organization that can recruit from any area.
• “B” ball is an organization that pulls girls from within their own league and the player must already be registered in the league.
• “C” ball is primarily the same as “B” ball, but is the second team for a league in a given age group. “C” teams usually compete against other “C” level teams and often play a more limited schedule than the league’s “B” team.
• AVGSL first fields a “B” team in a given age group and then fields a “C” team if there is sufficient interest from both players and coaches.
Q. Where do you typically play?
A. tournaments are within the bay area, with each team usually scheduling one overnight tournament. Overnight tournaments have been in locations such as Livermore, Napa, Tahoe, Soquel, etc.
Q. What is a typical tournament schedule?
A. 6-8 tournaments from Memorial Day through July or early August. Most
Q. What is a typical tournament like?
A. Saturday is “pool” play. Typical three games that “seed” the teams for Sunday(championship play). Who we play and at what time on Sunday is determined by this seeding. Sunday is usually single elimination and will vary from one to three/four games.
Q. What is a typical practice schedule?
A. In May the player’s commitment to their league team comes first for practices and games. Lightning practice will be fit in where possible. In May there will also be practices on Sundays. Once our AVGSL league is over the Lightning teams will generally practice on Tues., Wed., and Thur., but the final practice schedule is determined by the coaches.
Q. What are the benefits of travel ball?
A. A tournament will usually result in 5 or 6 games a weekend so that would be 30+ games for 6 tournaments to 40+ games for 8 tournaments. In addition to the number of games your daughter will play, she will be with experienced coaches who continually work on mechanics, coverages and strategic play. In this atmosphere, your daughter will no doubt perform at a higher level, which will be evident in her level of play the following year.
Q. What if we have a vacation already planned?
A. Please discuss with the appropriate head coach prior to committing to the team.
Q. How do you select coaches?
A. The AVGSL Board votes on the coaches via applications submitted for Head Coach.