Is there a place for tiny girls in softball 12u and beyond?

[radness]

A few years ago, we went to watch UH vs USF, and I was surprised at two things. First thing that caught my attention was Sara Nevins. She was 6' and was bringing the heat. The second thing that caught my attention was the 3rd baseman. She was 4'10"!!! She was starter at 3rd for much of her collegiate career and she played on the Puerto Rican National Team. I actually talked to her mom in the stands. Height does not matter for most positions except maybe 1B and sometimes catcher. My DD is 5'10" and can reach some of the riseballs that a shorter catcher cannot get to.

https://gousfbulls.com/sports/softball/roster/monica-santos/5604

A Catcher have worked with who is 6' feet 1" has a D1 interested, and D3's.
Ginormous wing span.
Everything folds together nicely into compact athletic catching mechanics.
The height dissapears...until its needed
Shows off her mobility.
First base would easily be a transition position for a coach seeking great glove talent.
Then the bonus is she can Catch!

 

[lancer360]

Thanks for all the posts. She has been starting to work on slapping and hitting away from the left side. She still hits harder from the right side, but she is getting better. Luckily grades have never been a problem with her. She loves school. She is in all honor's classes and is getting all mid to high A's. I will pass along some of these stories and hopefully it will motivate her more to work on her slapping.

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[newnin]

I too have a daughter that is projected to top out at 5'1". I think she was also 4'7" in spring of 1st year 12u, but was around 65 pounds. The best thing I can recommend is get her working on her strength. I started it with mine in 10u and it is paying dividends in 14u. Nothing is more fun than when the outfield moves up on her.
You mentioned that she is fast. Has she tried slapping? Though she should still be able to hit for power at her size too.

 

[uncdrew]

Yes, there's a place for her, is it harder.....yes!

My DD is 5'0" and I can remember only one time, in 16U, that a girl was smaller than her. It's simple, play like you're 5'11" and make everyone see it!

Agreed.

No doubt there's a place for her (and other small girls).

But also no doubt it'll be harder.

Being big simply helps. In almost every sport.

 

[_MIA_]

Agreed.

No doubt there's a place for her (and other small girls).

But also no doubt it'll be harder.

Being big simply helps. In almost every sport.

Being strong helps..being big in and of itself doesn't do much..

 

[uncdrew]

Being strong helps..being big in and of itself doesn't do much..

Tomato, tomato.

By big, I mean strong. And tall. I should have said strong and tall. Y'all knew I meant strong and tall. I'll go change it to strong and tall.

 

[murphdog]

My DD is 5’5” now but started HS at 4’11”. She’s still a pretty small build but can definitely hold her own on the field. She did a ton of weight training in HS, both her HS soccer & softball coaches were former college players and they used the weight room a lot. Freshman year of college she could squat more than any other freshman or sophomore on the team and she was the second smallest.
She worked hard to get to where she is, she’s Playing D3 but did have a lot of D2 interest also.
Small doesn’t have to mean not strong. Strong, quick and small can be quite the threat on the field and at bat. What is a single for some of the bigger slower girls is easily extra bases for her.

 

[_MIA_]

Y'all knew I meant strong and tall.

I did? Personally I would worry a bit about some of these big 11 YO I see eating themselves out of the game by the time they get to 18’s...

 

[lancer360]

You mentioned that she is fast. Has she tried slapping? Though she should still be able to hit for power at her size too.

Yes, she has started slapping. Still needs work, but when she does slap it, she usually beats the throw to first.


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[ANNASDAD]

Being big simply helps. In almost every sport.

Several years ago Chris Hawkins from USC Upstate pulled my DD up in front of everyone after a camp scrimmage. Chris is a very tall guy, Anna had hit a HR and a triple in the scrimmage, but she made a diving play behind 2B and flipped the ball back to 2B to save a run and end the game. Both elbows are bleeding and she looks like they’ve been using her to drag the infield!

As he’s standing there looking like a giant with his arm around her, this very tall blonde player has just shown up for the next part of the camp. He said perfect example, this big girl just walks on the field and turns everyone’s head, and this little girl (Anna) has to make ESPN play after ESPN play just to get a coach to turn around......he then said I’m as guilty as anyone, but in this case I’ll take heart and hard work! It was a pretty big moment for her, she’s always known she had to work harder than girls much larger than her!