The biggest competition is internal competition against your teammates for playing time. It is something your DD has to get used to if she wants to play any sport.Is it common in 10u for teammates to compete against each other?
There is a right way to compete and a wrong way to compete. The right way for the player to push herself to become better. The wrong way is for the players to start "bad mouthing" the other player and to try to split the team.
Is it common? Yes.Furthermore, is it common for parents to partake in the competition?
Is it advisable? No.
Welcome to the jungle.There is SO much tension around these parents it’s often hard to sit at practice in the same facility or field as them. It feels so toxic.
???It feels as if they’re trying to turn other parents against us for absolutely nothing.
They have a reason...they want more time in their circle for their DD.
You're wrong. Competition against teammates is absolutely essential. It is part of athletic competition.I feel these girls are supposed to be competing as a team, not against each other.
Any sport is a zero sum game...there are only so many innings/minutes/events and what one players gets another player loses.
Again, there is a right way and a wrong way to compete for playing time. You have to teach your DD the right way.
My DD pitched TB, HS, Juco, and then D1. She became the "big dog" at each level. She took someone else's spot at each level of play. The kids who lost out to her were not happy about it--some accepted it as "she's better than me" and others did the same stuff that is happening to your DD.
My DD figured out how to handle it in college: (1) Pitch well. (2) Make friends with the best players on the team, and (3) take more than her share of responsibility for a loss and less than her share of the credit for a win (i.e., "aw shucks, I didn't do nothin', it was Suzy who won it for us").
That is sports. If your DD really wants to be a pitcher, she has to get used to it. You have to learn how to emotionally support her, because it can get really nasty.
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