There is only a small percentage who go pro so I hope that my children experience the best of sports - being active, being fit, seeing how hard work pays off, teamwork, discipline, sacrifice. The athletes have to have the passion themselves. Eighty percent of kids drop out of sports by the time they are 12 year old so we obviously are doing something wrong. Playing other sports helped me athletically with body awareness and coordination. What’s your view on the increased specialization and focus on one sport for young athletes?Ī: It’s truly to each his own. You played basketball and volleyball and were a team captain in all three sports. Q: You weren’t only a softball star in high school. You never know where you will end and what doors will open if you put in the hard word and dedication. She was at a junior college and now she was playing shortstop at Arizona, helping us win a national title. My junior year at Arizona, we had a recruit come in named Allison Andrade. The window to play is so short and it’s an extreme honor to be able to keep playing. I always tell athletes there’s nothing better than to play at the next level. You need get in a realistic realm and find a place that fits for you. If want to play it’s probably not going to be your top five choices. I work with a lot of junior college and Division II and Division III programs. The majority of athletes have to find out where they fit. How does your personal experience in recruiting translate?Ī: I was lucky enough to be among the small select percentage where I could pick where I wanted to go. Q: Obviously, not every athlete is an elite prospect like Jennie Finch. It gives them a starting point in the incredibly daunting cycle of recruiting to inform them where to begin and what they should be doing. The responsibility is still on the player and the player’s parent, but it gives them a realistic view of where they can go and schools that match up. Playced is affordable and gets knowledge you need out there. I was approached by other recruiting organizations, but they cost a lot of money and I never felt right about that. Me being a parent of three children, unless you are in the top select percent of athlete who get recruited, it takes a lot of work by parents and players to present themselves and pitch themselves and make themselves known. I do camps and clinics around country and I get asked a ton of questions and people express their concerns about playing in the next level. The goal is to get a college scholarship. Q: Why did you decide to get involved with Playced and with college recruiting?Ī: Recruiting is a hot topic these days. She and husband Casey Diagle, a former major league pitcher, have two sons, Ace, 8, and Deisel, 3, and a daughter, Paisley, 2.įinch spoke with USA TODAY High School Sports about recruiting, being a mom and the state of softball. ( also provides a weekly recruiting column for USA TODAY High School Sports.)įinch’s biggest role, though, is mom. In that role, Finch has joined forces with, a recruiting service that helps match athletes with colleges and educates athletes on the recruiting process. She retired in 2010 after a professional career and remains an advocate for female athletes and teacher of her sport through camps, clinics, speaking engagements and appearances. She is among the most decorated pitchers in history: national champion at Arizona, multiple time All-American, NCAA record for consecutive wins, her number retired by the school, Olympic gold medalist in 2004 and silver medalist in 2008. Those dreams took Finch to becoming the face of women’s softball in the United States and a national profile beyond her sport. I remember thinking my hard work is paying pay off and this is the beginning of my dreams coming true.” “It was like I can feel and see my goals and this is the beginning of it. As a child, she had been a bat girl for the Bruins baseball team. Her first recruiting letter came during her freshman year at La Miranda High from UCLA. Jennie Finch started playing softball as a 5-year-old in Southern California. Jennie Finch at the celebrity softball game at the baseball All-Star Game in New York in 2013 (Photo: Brad Penner, USA TODAY Sports)
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |