My daughter played both this year. I know this is anecdotal, but I saw more scouts at 18U games. The biggest difference I noticed had to do with the player's priorities related to their age. The seniors in particular are all over the place. Some of the girls that are unsigned are playing like their hair is on fire in hopes of getting that last-minute offer. Others have given up and are skipping practices and chatting about parties in the dugout. Some of the girls that do have offers have taken an "I don't have to tolerate this anymore." attitude. Either way, they are all pretty bad teammates so winning and losing feels like an afterthought.
You are looking at a national team, so maybe you won't experience this. But I don't really enjoy watching her 18U team play. They just don't seem to care like they used to.
I think this captures the point well. 16u vs 18u isn't the question you need to ask it is are the goals of the team in line with what my DD wants/needs.My dd skipped over 16U to play for an 18U team that carried HS freshmen through seniors. The team is loosely affiliated with an org of the same name but the 18U Gold team was the team that did the big showcases on the East coast. They played at the main venues. As long as the players sent their emails, the coaches came.
ETA: I think what helped a lot was that the coach had been doing this for a long time with this team. College coaches knew him and the team name.
Yep, we had a group of all mixed age kids. We always had a few committed seniors but they were never the majority of the team.I think this captures the point well. 16u vs 18u isn't the question you need to ask it is are the goals of the team in line with what my DD wants/needs.
I wouldn't want my uncommitted 16u eligible DD to play on an 18u team of all committed kids but would have no problem with an 18u team of kids similar to her
Same experience here. Colorado, Nevada, NorCal, SoCal, Arizona.I found there were more college coaches at our 16U games last summer and fall of 22 than there were at our 18U games this fall.
This is a very helpful thread. We're contemplating a move from current 16u team to a national 18u team that's comprised of committeds and uncommitteds.
? Is there a conversation that could be had with the coach to align player goals better?Current team plays basically the same events, but not at the right locations.
It's difficult for sure. Even some players going to camps get a sense of thinking they have been unnoticed.We don't think our daughter's emails are even being opened, but feel like being able to include the new team name and the coaches' names would help improve that situation.