Summer teams must decide whether to give younger players a chance to play in front of scouts or focus on winning titles.
By JOHN SCHWARB
Published July 19, 2003
The 18-and-under Clearwater Bullets club team heads to Plantation this weekend, another stop on a season full of college exposure tournaments.
Only the majority of this team doesn't need exposure anymore. For many Bullets, softball is simply a game again.
"It's just for fun," said Tera McCleary, an outfielder bound for Maryville (Tenn.) College this fall. "There's 250 college scouts and I don't have to impress anyone."
The drive for college scholarships is the heart of travel softball, the highlight of the summer for hundreds of bay area ballplayers.
Yet 18-and-under teams, many with at least a few players signed, go about their business differently.
Some adjust schedules, some give a nod to younger players and some make their biggest push toward prestigious club titles.
For graduated seniors ready to become college freshmen, it's all good.
"It's been the best season I've ever had," Bullets pitcher Amy McGathey said. "We have a lot more fun than we used to, I have to admit that."
McGathey is one of nine signed players on the Bullets, which like many club teams has remained largely intact for several years. Many of the same players once took the field fighting for attention but now can relax knowing their future is secure.
"In a way, it's kind of special," said Cindy McGathey, the Bullets coach and Amy's mother.
Cindy McGathey adjusted the team's schedule, limiting road trips to within Florida and neighboring states.
Three rising high school seniors remain, looking to catch the eye of college scouts. They benefit from the leadership and experience of the graduated players, who the coach promises are still "sliding, pitching hard, diving" to help the team win.
Not all coaches share the same philosophy of allowing so many seniors to continue active roles.
Chuck Poetter, the longtime coach of the 18-and-under Clearwater Lady Bombers and Palm Harbor U., prefers to keep a younger lineup and take a shot at nationally powerful teams that keep older players on the field.
"We're only there to get kids their scholarship," Poetter said. "The girls that have already signed are not playing anymore."
At a recent major tournament in Boulder, Colo., Poetter's team finished ninth and was eliminated 1-0 by a team from Kansas City that included a starting pitcher and two infielders from the University of Missouri, still eligible to play with their 18-and-under clubs.
"Why are they playing college kids? What's the benefit?" Poetter said.
The benefit to some teams is the drive for championships.
Ray Seymour coaches the 18-and-under Tampa Mustangs and Hillsborough Community College, understanding both sides of the argument.
Come the end of the summer his Mustangs, which include former Northeast standout and HCC-bound Crystal Folwell, will have had it both ways.
They'll have had exposure for younger players, plus a shot next month at the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) 18-and-under Gold national title for players who have their future well in hand.
"That's the ultimate," Seymour said. "It does nothing but make them better."
