This is the final entry from the “Journey Journal” of Sophia Taliaferro, a high school junior in Virginia who first hit the Triple Crown Sports radar in June 2022 while taking part in multiple pre-event camps before the Colorado 4th of July softball tournament. The idea was sparked to hear straight from a student-athlete’s perspective about not just college recruiting, but how past experiences and current events influence the timeless question – what’s next?
 
If you follow me on social media, you know that I committed to Syracuse University. For the last entry of my Journey Journal, I want to share why I chose Syracuse.
 
During the National Fastpitch Coaches’ Association (NFCA) convention last December, the Syracuse coaching staff had talked about me with my travel coach, India Chiles. The Syracuse staff watched my team play last summer, and head coach Shannon Doepking knew my travel ball coach from their days playing together in college and in the National Pro Fastpitch League.
 
Syracuse wasn’t a school that was on my list or one I knew much about. However, I received an invite from them after the end of fall season inviting me to their winter camp. Coach India confirmed that there was genuine interest and had good things to say about the program so I signed up. A few things that stood out to me were the personalities of the coaching staff, the Syracuse players who worked the camp and the culture I saw there.
 
When I was 12 years old, Lauren Haeger, All-American and national champion from the University of Florida, came to one of my team’s softball practices to help us with hitting. At the end of practice, she told us about her own journey and gave us a piece of advice that stuck with me. She said the most important thing to know when picking a college is to know what you like.
 
She used herself as an example and explained that her dad was a football coach with a reputation for being tough. She said that she knew she played best under strict, down-to-business, male coaches. One of the main reasons she picked Florida was because the coach there was the type of coach she liked playing for – the type that would bring the best out of her.
 
I have been coached by many different types of coaches across all the sports I’ve played. I figured out that I respond best to strong-minded female coaches who have a good sense of humor. When I met Coach Shannon, it was clear that she was someone I would love to have as a coach. I also loved her two assistants, Katie McEachern who played for Coach Shannon at Dartmouth, and Sydney O’Hara, who played at Syracuse. Collectively, it was clear they got along well and played off each other’s strengths.
 
The close relationships of the coaching staff reflected the culture of the program. Coach Shannon told me her program was focused on player AND person. She explained that she values people for who they are outside of softball and works to develop her players in both aspects of their lives. When I was at camp, I saw evidence of this. First, I got to meet a member of the softball staff who works with players on their mental game. This is important because it shows that the athletic program cares enough about their athlete’s mental health to pay someone to help.
 
There were two athletes from the team working the camp and they also told me they loved their coaches. One of them transferred twice before she got to Syracuse. She shared that she hated softball before she got to Syracuse, where her mindset changed completely. Because of the Syracuse coaches, she had learned to love the game again and found peace with herself. Finally, “person over player” is something my high school coach, Suzy Willemssen, also talks about and I learned that Coach Suzy and Coach Shannon knew each other from attending “What Drives Winning” seminars. This was another affirmation of their culture.
 
Another thing important to me going into recruiting was going somewhere competitive athletically and strong academically. For that reason, there were many Atlantic Coast Conference schools that I had contacted. I liked the combination of athletics and academics in the ACC. Syracuse is in the ACC and is also well-known for academics. It's somewhere where I can play softball at the highest level, while earning a great college degree.
 
Other high academic schools with D-I softball programs also talked to my travel ball coach at NFCA and asked me to come visit, which I did before committing to Syracuse. Syracuse stood out because it appeared to me that Syracuse didn’t place athletics over academics or vice versa. Additionally, Syracuse provides significant academic assistance to its athletes. The high academic schools seemed more like academic institutions that play softball – academics first. Ironically, the high academic schools also had less academic assistance available for their student athletes compared to Syracuse.
 
I wanted to be somewhere that excelled at both, and Syracuse, for me, was the best choice.
 
Lastly, I love the campus. It has an old-money, cozy feel. Syracuse is a university with many colleges and each college has a unique architecture, which is very different from schools that have a uniform look. The campus is easily walkable and doesn’t have a huge population. There are roughly 23,000 students, which was a perfect size for me. I didn’t want to go somewhere where I would know everyone after the first semester, but I also didn’t want to go somewhere with an overwhelming number of students.
 
The best advice I want to leave you with is first, know what you are looking for. What culture is important to you? What kind of coaching do you respond best to? How far away from home are you willing to live? What do you want to achieve both academically and athletically, and what schools provide that? It’s important to be open minded throughout the entire process because you never know when opportunities will present themselves.
 
My dad likes to say that “people are interested in people who are interested in them and it works both ways.” Even though I wasn’t initially interested in Syracuse, they were interested in me. I opened myself up to that interest and found a place that I feel is perfect for me. Finally, healthy relationships and honesty matters. My travel ball coach, my high school coach, my recruiting advisor and my parents were all parts of my recruiting journey. They helped me set attainable goals, and then gave me the resources to achieve them.

My journey has led me to Syracuse and I am counting down the days until I get there. I can’t predict the future, but I feel good about where I am now.
 
Best of luck to you all! – Sophia

Teams can win PAID Entry into Power Pools at 2024 Colorado 4th of July event
 
Ready to elevate your game and make the climb to the Colorado 4th of July? It all starts in Fall 2023, on the Road to the Rockies, now wide open for selected age groups at the following Triple Crown events (to win a PAID Power Pool spot in the 2024 Colorado 4th of July):
 
Sept. 8-10: Chicago Super 72 (14U, 16U, 18U divisions)
Nov. 3-5: Arizona Fall Showcase (16U, 18U divisions)
Nov. 11-12: Myrtle Beach Fall Showcase (14U, 16U, 18U divisions)
Nov. 17-19: Don Battles On (So Cal) (14U division)
 
We’ll be releasing more details on how your team can earn a PAID spot in the 2024 Colorado 4th of July Power Pools later this spring – please direct any questions to:
 
Stephanie Klaviter
stephanie@triplecrownsports.com
(970) 672-0531

January 18, 2023, FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- Triple Crown Sports and Athletes Unlimited have forged a strategic partnership for 2023 that will look to combine the strengths of both organizations through cross-promotion and overall marketing support throughout the upcoming year.

Beginning with diamond-sport tournament offerings dating back to the 1980s, Triple Crown Sports currently produces more than 150 events in the youth and college arenas, today with particular emphasis in baseball, basketball, softball and volleyball. With its roster of proven athletes in basketball, lacrosse, softball and volleyball, Athletes Unlimited stands as a natural fit to be in association with TCS as AU expands its competitive game schedule.

The partnership is rooted in the important work of highlighting the skills of female athletes and elevating the presence of women’s sports. Athletes Unlimited rosters include some of the nation’s most proven and dedicated talents in their sports; meanwhile, Triple Crown has a long history of supporting women’s athletics, starting with youth fastpitch and evolving into the national college space with the Cancun Challenge and Preseason/Postseason WNIT in basketball, the NIVC in volleyball and the NISC and Puerto Vallarta Challenge in softball.

“This strategic partnership with Athletes Unlimited is great news for all of the teams, coaches and players who play with Triple Crown Sports.” said Andy Hansen, Chief Marketing Officer.  “AU continues to transform women’s professional sports and now the TCS community will get first-hand insight into what’s in store for AU in 2023.  Keep an eye out for updates from AU throughout the season and special appearances at some of Triple Crown’s top events.”

“Everyone at Athletes Unlimited couldn’t be more excited for this new opportunity to partner with Triple Crown Sports,” said Athletes Unlimited Sr. Director of Marketing Matt Biggers. “This partnership will allow us to combine the reach of both organizations to raise the level of awareness of all of the great things both organizations are doing in the world of girls’ and women’s sports.”

About Athletes Unlimited
Athletes Unlimited is a new model of pro sports where athletes are decision-makers and individual players are champions of team sports. Athletes Unlimited literally changes the game with faster play and new team rosters every week, delivering next-level competition and engagement in which every moment counts. The first season of women's softball took place in 2020, with the inaugural seasons of women's indoor volleyball and women’s lacrosse being completed in 2021, along with season two of softball. We completed our inaugural Basketball league, season two of lacrosse and volleyball, season three of softball and our inaugural AUX softball competitions in 2022.
For more information, visit AUProSports.com.

About Triple Crown Sports
Based in Fort Collins, CO., Triple Crown Sports has been producing youth, high school and college events for 40 years. TCS runs both the preseason and postseason WNIT basketball events and produces the men’s and women’s DI Cancun Challenge tournaments in November. Triple Crown is also powering “WNIT” concept events in D-I softball (NISC) and volleyball (NIVC), with those two events debuting in 2017. Triple Crown’s PV College Challenge features two sessions of the top DI college softball teams in the country each year in Puerto Vallarta, MX. TC fastpitch tournaments (including the 1,100-team Sparkler/Fireworks event) draw the nation’s finest club programs, and hundreds of college coaches attend TCS events for recruiting purposes. TCS produces one of the largest youth baseball events in the world with the 700-team Omaha SlumpBuster during the College World Series. The Triple Crown Volleyball NIT has become the top-recruited club volleyball event in the country each February when 600 teams compete in Kansas City, MO.

​Media Contact:
TCS: Craig Buchanan, craig@triplecrownsports.com, (970) 672-0566
AU: Scott Miranda, scott@mirandaco.net, (914) 806-6771

​This is the third entry from the “Journey Journal” of Sophia Taliaferro, a high school junior in Virginia who first hit the Triple Crown Sports radar in June 2022 while taking part in multiple pre-event camps before the Colorado 4th of July softball tournament. The idea was sparked to hear straight from a student-athlete’s perspective about not just college recruiting, but how past experiences and current events influence the timeless question – what’s the future going to look like?
 
Going into the fall, I saw myself being committed by the end of the club travel season with Fury Platinum. I suited up for events like the Diamond Direct Invite (SC), Ray Seymour Invite (FL), Connect Sports Scenic City Showcase (TN), Atlanta Veterans Showcase (GA) and the Thunderbolts 5-Star Showcase (AL).

As it turns out, I have successfully made it to December as a free agent.
 
On paper, my season looks fantastic. I led the team in most offensive stats; in 56 at-bats I ended with a .464 batting average and a .508 on-base percentage as the leadoff hitter. I played innings at shortstop, second, outfield and behind the plate. I showcased my athleticism, my versatility and my bat.
 
To have had a season where my performance was everything it needed to be, but not have the college commitment to show for it, is disheartening. I’m sure my experience isn’t special. I know that there are so many other girls going through the exact scenario as myself. Still, I stare at all the commitments happening on my Twitter feed and tell myself the reason I haven't made it yet is that I’m just not good enough.
 
I need to work harder.

I need to be stronger. Faster. Smarter.

The truth is, a million people could tell me that I have so much time, and I will still submit myself to doubt. I struggled with feelings like these for most of the season. I would step onto the field believing I had to prove that I was worthy of a coach's attention. Each error and bad at-bat told me that I didn’t deserve a spot playing college softball.
 
In one game, Georgia Tech came to watch me. I was at shortstop. In that game, I went 2-for-2 at the plate but made two errors in the infield. I felt like crawling into a hole. When the game was over, I went to speak with my coach. I rhetorically asked her if I blew my shot. I think she was a little taken aback. She didn’t say much to me right then but gave me some advice after the tournament was over. She told me that she noticed I was too focused on the opportunities I could lose over a bad performance.
 
One thing she said that really resonated with me was, “Just give the coaches your best.” My coach wasn’t telling me to strive for perfection. She was saying that all I needed to do was play at my best level of intensity, energy and aggression. When I played worried about what I could do wrong, I played scared. My mindset made a 180. For the last couple of tournaments, I allowed myself to play big. I was suddenly unbothered by minor mistakes. I embraced practicing mindfulness, which was a huge theme for my team this fall, and my confidence grew roots.

Now, as I continue to navigate the recruiting process, I am still working to maintain a positive outlook. Some things that help ground me when I start to feel anxious about my future are these:

I have no doubt that I will play college softball.
Where I land, and when it happens, will work itself out.
God has a plan for me.

During this off-season, my goal is to improve where I can and let go of the things that are out of my control. I know it is a cliche to tell you all to trust the process, but there really isn’t a better phrase for recruiting. As Coach India says, “If you try to make sense of recruiting, you will only succeed in making yourself insane. There isn’t any rhyme or reason behind it.”
 
Best of luck to all the 24’s out there. Happy Holidays!
-Sophia

FORT COLLINS, CO. – In the first agreement as part of the Triple Crown Series softball initiative, TCS has secured an official partnership with Primetime Fastpitch Series, which will run multiple softball tournaments in the summer of 2023 out of its home base of the Inwood Sports Complex in Joliet, Illinois.

Triple Crown Series is designed to combine the insight and expertise of local and regional tournament directors with the marketing muscle and production skillset found at Triple Crown Sports, which has 40 years of experience in professional execution of premium, must-attend events. Triple Crown Series will be a magnet for and natural fit with high-value organizations across the country that attract teams to their weekend tournament slate.

The TC Series will help continue to move youth diamond sports forward in the right direction and provide unparalleled experiences for athletes and their families across the country. Primetime Tournaments has worked hard to create and execute some of the top events in the Midwest over the past 15 years.

“We are in our 15th year running youth events and in our 2nd year in fastpitch. We are excited to move forward with Triple Crown Sports,” said Jay Darnell, president of Primetime Tournaments. “We are excited to be hosting all our fastpitch events at our turf facilities. TrackMan with video for hitters and Stalker Radars with video for pitchers will be used to gather data during tournaments.”

Here’s a quick look at the 2023 tournament offerings from Primetime Softball:

June 8-11: Triple Crown/Primetime Summer Opener
June 15-18: Triple Crown/Primetime Summer Bash
June 22-25: Triple Crown/Primetime State Championships – College World Series Format
June 29-July 2: Triple Crown/Primetime Red, White and Blue Classic
July 6-9: Triple Crown/Primetime Summer Championships
July 13-16: Triple Crown/Primetime Midwest Collegiate
July 20-23: Triple Crown/Primetime Great Lakes
July 27-30: Triple Crown/Primetime National Championship

“Triple Crown Sports is proud to announce its partnership with Primetime Softball. They are producing high-quality softball events in the Midwest and are using state-of-the-art technology to test and measure players who participate in their events,” said Matt Pilcher, national director of Triple Crown Series.

Primetime Fastpitch Series

TC Series

This is the second entry from the “Journey Journal” of Sophia Taliaferro, a high school junior in Virginia who first hit the Triple Crown Sports radar in June 2022 while taking part in multiple pre-event camps before the Colorado 4th of July softball tournament. The idea was sparked to hear straight from a student-athlete’s perspective about not just college recruiting, but how past experiences and current events influence the timeless question – what’s the future going to look like?
 
Falling out of love with your sport is something many athletes face; I’ve been there myself. Here I want to talk about events that led to my decision to quit softball, and how I came back.

At age 10, I decided I wanted to play softball in college. I wrote out my goal on a piece of paper and stuck it on the fridge. I believed softball would be a constant in my life. That year I had to leave the team that helped me discover my passion for the game as my parents and I decided that to pursue my dream, I had to move to a more competitive organization. I was heartbroken about having to leave behind my best friends, but excited to be moving forward to bigger things. 
 
My 11u team was my first experience in having a negative coach. My coach promised that their experience along with the reputation of the organization would guarantee me a career in college softball. I had high expectations for the season, but the quality of coaching simply didn’t hold up. My coach turned out to be extremely degrading and mentally abusive. I have one distinct memory from that season that happened when my new 11u team had been playing the 10u season team I had just left.  
 
I was behind the plate that game – and I had just failed to block a ball from my pitcher and a run scored. My coach called time and marched out of the dugout towards me, already accusing me through body language. I was cussed out in front of all my former teammates and their parents sitting behind the fence. I had been publicly humiliated for a single mistake. Many of my former teammate's parents approached my coach after the game to defend me. My coach apologized to me and my parents, but it never really got better. He only liked me when I was afraid of him, so when I decided not to be afraid anymore there was nothing left.
 
Needless to say, I found myself on another new team the next year. Fast forward to age 14, the travel team I had been on had fallen apart and I was forced to find another new team. A coach that I had known for a while reached out to me and asked me to join their team. The team would play at the highest travel level, and it would be my first year going to the big travel tournaments. The coach won me over by complimenting my skills and selling the team.
 
What I thought would be my forever travel team turned out to be one of the worst experiences of my life. The coach had obvious favorite players that were made blameless in all situations. After losses, we would receive 30-minute lectures where players were called out by name for what they did wrong. The coach would throw the schools we were emailing in our faces and tell us we would never be good enough to play there with our performance. If a team member was struggling, the culture the coach had built ostracized them. If you performed, you were liked. I watched girls who had been confident, passionate players on that team suffer with severe performance anxiety and self-doubt. It was at this point in my life that softball felt more like a task instead of a game. I couldn’t find any adult that I could trust. The next couple of years went on about the same as I slowly shut down. I dreaded practices, and every second I was on a field I wanted to be someplace else. 
 
So, I stopped. I took a three-month break and I wasn’t sure I was ever coming back.  I played field hockey, hung out with friends from school, slept a lot and did homework.  My parents would talk to me once in a while to try and see where I was and understand where I was coming from, but I was too burnt out to even talk about it.  
 
One day my dad told me I needed to try again. Get up, get your bag, let's go practice – so I did.  It made me angry, but at the same time I figured it was time to give it a try. I needed to see if I could find that passion again before I walked away for good. My dad was coaching a rec team of 12u girls and asked me to help run some practices. Working with them reminded me of my early days playing and helped me realize that I missed it.
 
Ultimately, I was able to find a team and a coach who really cares about me as a person and a player. It’s hard to put trust in coaches who screw you over, and it made me lose trust in the game. But my family didn’t give up on me, I didn’t give up for long, and now I’m back to stay.

Name: Taylor Cox
 
Job title: College Coach Coordinator
 
Email: taylor@triplecrownsports.com
 
Hometown: Loveland, CO
 
Family: I was born in Wichita, KS and moved to Colorado when I was 5 years old so I consider Loveland my hometown. After college I moved to Denver for 10 years and recently moved to Greeley in January. I am 31 years old, a Cancer, love softball, the Kansas Jayhawks and enjoy good food and good company! In 2011 I met my fiance, Shawn, and we welcomed our son, Kellen, in November 2015. We got engaged at my 90's themed 30th birthday party last year and will be getting married in July of 2023. I was raised by my mom, Tamara and am the youngest of 3. I have one sister and one brother both older; Ashtin (36) and Chad (33). We are all super close and I consider them all my best friends!  We are all big sports fans and enjoy spending time together watching and playing sports, board games, traveling and more.
 
College attended: Colorado State University Global, graduated 2018.
 
Sports background: I started playing competitive fastpitch at age of 7 for the Loveland Rage and went on to play for 12 years. I ended my fastpitch career playing for Comets-Gold (Sakamoto) before going off to Bradley University where I took on the role of starting shortstop. During my freshman year I broke the walk record and won the team’s offensive MVP. After two years and a few injuries, I decided to end my career and return home. I now play slowpitch softball competitively and get to share the field with my sister.
 
Hobbies: I spend most of my weekends hanging out with my family – I love spending time with my son and playing board games and watching movies together. Otherwise, most of my weekends are consumed with softball. During the offseason I like to be creative, paint, draw, craft, etc. I hope to start traveling and taking my son to the places I loved growing up.
 
Favorite trip: Earlier in 2022 we were able to take our son to Oahu, HI for a family vacation. We went to the Polynesian Cultural Center, North Shore, snorkeling at Hanauma Bay, ate some amazing food and made some amazing memories!
 
How did you become associated with Triple Crown?: I played for the Buckaroos when I was younger, and we used to come to the facility for hitting practice. My sister played for the TC Stars when she was 18 so I would come around for her games and use the facility as well. I also worked some events when I was younger and played some events growing up. I am currently a part of TC Pitchers.
 
What intrigues you the most about Triple Crown?: I love that you get to wake up every day and work in sports. Being a part of something that so many people are passionate about is exciting! From what I know and have learned TC is one big family and I am excited to get to be a part of it!

What follows is the first entry of the “Journey Journal” as written by Sophia Taliaferro, a high school junior in Virginia who first hit the Triple Crown Sports radar in June 2022 while taking part in multiple pre-event camps before the Colorado 4th of July softball tournament. The idea was sparked to hear straight from a student-athlete’s perspective about not just college recruiting, but how past experiences and current events influence the timeless question – what’s the future going to look like?
 
First and foremost, we thank Sophia for her willingness to share her story. It’s our wager that thousands of teenagers are navigating similar waters, just as how innumerable parents can remember their own highs and lows in these important years. We’ll look forward to the updates and relevant pieces of history (all relayed as Sophia sees fit) as clarity begins to shine on the road ahead.

Hi, my name is Sophia Taliaferro. I am a class of 2024 softball player looking to play Division I softball in college and have been given an opportunity to document my experiences as I go through the recruiting process. In all honesty, I was incredibly hesitant about accepting this role for a few reasons. Mainly, I am a very private person and do not enjoy sharing my personal life. However, the purpose I have been called to fulfill as a guide to the young girls who want to pursue a career in college softball won priority over my individual discomforts. I hope that as you follow my story throughout this series, you will come out with a realistic idea of what to expect when competing for a spot in a college program.
 
October marked the second month of my recruiting process. So far, I have been told by my travel ball coach, India Chiles, college coaches like me and want to come to watch me play this fall -- however, I have not had any direct contact. I am sure I can speak for many players when I say that I feel anxious about recruiting. Scrolling through my social media pages, I see so many girls posting about their visits and commitments to play at their dream schools. Post after post, I can’t help but question myself.
 
“What if I never get any offers?
 
“Am I even good enough to play D1?”
 
Thoughts like these are things that circulate in my mind daily. It can be tempting to give into these concerns and believe them. To help keep myself grounded I focus on a couple of things. My coach has repeatedly told me that she isn’t worried about me achieving my goals and that coaches are slower to recruit 2024s this year. Knowing this, I can just relax and trust the process. It also helps me to focus my energy on things that are non-softball related. When too much weight is put on how you perform as a player, it can start to feel like your worth as a person is defined by a statistic. This kind of mindset can end athletic careers and wreck mental health.
 
Right now, I am playing high-school field hockey and taking several AP/honors classes. I love field hockey because it allows me to experience the freedom that comes from playing a sport that I don’t have to be good at. I can have fun doing something I don’t take as seriously. My challenging academic schedule acts as a sort of opposite pressure. I have pressure put on me to be great at softball, and on the other side, I have pressure to achieve good grades. While sometimes it can get overwhelming, for the most part I enjoy putting hard work into something other than softball. Making time for other interests makes sure that softball is a part of me; I am not softball.
 
Though I keep myself distracted with lots of extracurricular activities, the recruiting process is always at the top of my-things-to-worry-about list. I have no idea how things will work out, but I have no choice but to let them unfold at their own pace.

by Kyle Koso

Members of the Yale Softball Academy out of Canada can be excused if they feel as though they double as a track and field squad, given all the hurdles that seem to sprout up.
 
Based outside of Vancouver, BC., Yale’s athletes have to navigate the region’s difficult weather, a relentless fact of life up North that that complicates game schedules, workouts and training in ways unfathomable to most USA-based programs. To jam up the works even more, Canada’s government imposed severe restrictions on gatherings during the height of COVID-19 concerns – like a soupy infield after a storm, it very much muddied the growth arc for players.
 
So if the blue skies and warm temperatures had Yale’s student-athletes in high spirits last weekend at the Triple Crown Las Vegas City of Lights showcase, it likely meant playing with each other meant as much as playing in front of college coaches.   
 
Yale has been coming to Las Vegas for this event for about 10 years, subtracting the COVID snarls of 2020-21. The sense of purpose was obvious for the academy, as about 55 club teams, 250 players and 50 college coaches were on hand at Majestic Park to make connections leading to future spots on college rosters.    
 
“We’ve had a lot of girls come down to this tournament and had scholarships come out of it. Maybe you have girls who find a JUCO, they’ve gone on to play for a D-I or D-II, and it’s always been a pretty successful thing to be at this tournament and give the girls lots of opportunities,” said Jen Schreyer, Yale Softball Academy teacher and coordinator who pitched for Simon Fraser and won an NAIA national title in 2005. “As Canadians, we play a lot less ball because of the weather circumstances. An American might play 300 games between club ball and showcase tournaments, while our season might have girls playing together 60 times.
 
“We’re at a bit of a disadvantage that way, so that’s why we have to train harder, and why a lot of girls look to the opportunity to be part of our program. We work on the skills as much as they can in the offseason. We have snow, lots of rain in the Pacific Northwest. We’re always looking for the billionaire to build us an indoor facility, because the one we have now is crap. It’s on cement, which is never good for the ol’ shin splints.”
 
Yale was founded in 2007; it’s best understood as a regular high school with a sport academy piece to it serving hockey, baseball and softball. On the typical day, students have school for two blocks in the morning, then head for the academy for two afternoon blocks. Softball players train from September to January’s offseason from travel ball, with other training on field when weather allows to go with a mix of tournaments and trips to college showcases.
 
“For the second half of semester, it’s three days of strength and conditioning, speed and agility, general health and PE, nutrition, then getting into the college recruiting process,” Schreyer said. “We help with the steps if they want to play at the next level. We always have to work harder. We have one NCAA team in Canada, and one NAIA team, and one JUCO. Options are limited. There are lot of girls who play, and we have to go south of the border if we want to play at a higher level.”
 
A large portion of the softball roster lives about an hour away from Yale and is up at 5 a.m. to make the trek to school. In a given year, six or seven live away from home on campus for a semester, and the squad recently had a player from New Brunswick (a crisp 54-hour drive) -- she was recruited at Vegas City of Lights and is now playing D-I softball.
 
“Being a part of this every year has really helped make (connections with multiple programs),” Schreyer added. “My job isn’t in the dugout, but to be out and talking to coaches. I quite enjoy it now; when I started I was 23 and terrified, and I still felt like a college player. Making connections with all the coaches … keeping that going the best way possible.”
 
With the Yale staff looking after the big picture, it’s up to the players to stay determined and not be pushed away from their aspirations.
 
“The challenge is, every day is different. We’re always put to the test … fielding, new drills, our mechanics, and we work on communicating a lot,” said middle infielder Navi Schalin, 17, a Vancouver native. “It’s more than two hours every day, outside in the cold, so yeah, it’s really good. I would not be the athlete I am today without going to Yale. The coaches are amazing and so encouraging. They’ll always tell you what you can do better, and they will push you really hard, which has been very beneficial. They are preparing us for college.
 
“It is really challenging showing up at tournaments, everyone has been playing outdoors for so long and we are just coming into it. It’s hard having the shorter season, but that makes us work just that much more to be better. We don’t take anything for granted. We don’t have the facilities, or as many coaches as on the States. When it comes to the team, we work for each other, and it’s a group effort. Our season is so short, we put it first. We only have so much time, so let’s put everything we can into it, have each other’s back no matter what.”
 
“I’ve learned a lot since grade 9. They’ve taught me a lot about pitching, and the infield coaching is very good. Every day is different, there’s a mix of what you need to do each day,” said pitcher/utility player Jenna Johnston, 17, also from Vancouver. “If you mess up, they teach you. You’ll do 500 pushups if you forget gear, so they’re hard on us, but they want to make us the best we can be.
 
“With the weather, it can be hard to find a place to practice. With pitching, I do a lot of long toss in the offseason, and it’s not easy doing that when it’s snowing and minus-2 degrees. Finding a place to do hitting, the facility of my old club team wasn’t heated, so you’d break bats every other week. We’re there for each other. We know what we missed with the COVID years, all pushed back with recruiting. You come down here, it’s a whole different level of ball, the intensity and the pitching, it’s completely different. We all know each other up in Canada, and we know we need to get better.”