Shayna Glass, a 2022 OF/2B for Firecrackers-Medina/Garcia and Mission Viejo ( California) High, was recently selected to Team Israel for this summer’s Triple Crown International Challenge and she has joined Extra Inning Softball’s crew of bloggers to talk about her softball adventures.
Shayna talks about the recruiting process in her initial blog.
Super excited to receive an email this week from Coach @AdamKGlickman about being selected to Team Israel for the @TCSFastpitch International Challenge- can’t wait to get out there and compete w/ some of the best players in the nation representing their countries and heritages! pic.twitter.com/id6hZyYR63
— Shayna Glass (@ShaynaGlass2022) March 7, 2021
*****
“Those times when you get up early and you work hard, those times when you stay up late and you work hard, those times when you don’t feel like working, you’re too tired, you don’t want to push yourself, but you do it anyway. That is actually the dream. That’s the dream. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.” — Kobe Bryant
For me, going through the recruiting process is kind of like going through a tournament. Working out, tee work, fielding and team practices before a tournament is the equivalent of getting content from games, editing highlights and writing countless emails to coaches.
Sending emails to your top schools and letting coaches know who you are is the first step, kind of like pool play. You are in the tournament and trying to figure out where you fit in the mix.
Where do you size up compared to the competition?
Call the police❗️someone got robbed😝Not great footage but w/ a runner in scoring position watch me in RF go over the fence to steal a HR n then – next play a diving catch #NotOnMyWatch #EveryPlayCounts #Mamba @FCMedina16U @Firecrackersinc @Los_Stuff @StriveSoftball @BBOS_Nation pic.twitter.com/i3hiBb6LOG
— Shayna Glass (@ShaynaGlass2022) January 24, 2021
You make it through pool play and you are now facing tougher competition. You are now into the elimination rounds. The tension starts to rise because you are now playing against the better teams, you have a few bad at-bats and you start to get flustered.
To me this is like when you have worked so hard reaching out to colleges and aren’t getting emails back because the dead period is pushed into the end of May.
But what happens next?
Someone pats you on your back and says, “It’s okay, you’ll get the next one, keep your head up.” Hope is restored. You are now in the semifinals. You are in the zone and hitting the best you ever have. This is like when you are getting lots of emails back and setting up calls with colleges.
You start to feel the energy and the momentum is going your way.
Hitting with a beautiful AZ sunset as my background last night at the @Firecrackersinc Invitational before the rain came in and shut us down for the weekend @FCMedina16U @SlowTheGameDown #LV2HIT @fitbyKori @DSNAlabama @BBOS_Nation @ondecksoftball @StriveSoftball @SoftballConnect pic.twitter.com/0rA75pAh1w
— Shayna Glass (@ShaynaGlass2022) January 24, 2021
And then Boom! Just like that someone throws away the ball, and you lose, and the weekend is over. This is how it feels when emails start to slow down and the conversations get less and less. You are feeling low. You think back on all of the preparation and it is hard to see the good through the bad. It’s not over, it’s just not happening in the time that you want it to.
Time to start all over again and train for the next tournament. You don’t give up because you know you are good enough to be in the championship game. You know you can compete at the next level.
You know you have put in the time and are not afraid of hard work. You know you will get the call. You start doing because your next win is right around the corner. Now you start sending emails again and get back on your grind.
This process has been so up and down not just for me but for so many others. You are not alone. This is such a weird time and we all have to stick together. The one thing I have told myself over and over is to control what you can control and never lose hope.
Trust the process. Believe in yourself and know that your time is coming.
Me n my sis @breeglass2027 getting in some reps in the dark tonight! #grindneverstops #MambaMentality @Firecrackersinc @Los_Stuff @StriveSoftball @FCMedina16U @CoachPatrick_ @coach_simm @CoachLarissaA @Coach_B_ISU @BBOS_Nation @CoachPinkerton @AllAboutSoftbal @IHartFastpitch pic.twitter.com/0auWUnV8qt
— Shayna Glass (@ShaynaGlass2022) February 2, 2021
To sum it up, the recruiting process is just that, a process. It’s part of the bigger picture. In order to win at softball, you have to practice, you have to put in the time, there is no way around it.
My advice is to show up for recruiting like you show up for practice. We always say practice like you play. If you expect to play well, you have to put in the time and have quality practices. If you want to give yourself a chance at playing at the next level you have to put in the work for recruiting.
For me, at the end of the game, I want to say I left it all out on the field, I have nothing left to give.
By the time I graduate, I want to know that I did everything I could to get myself in front of the coaches to let them know who I am as a player and a person and that I am ready to play whatever role they ask of me to help contribute to the success of their program.
Currently, I am living the dream… it’s not my destination, it’s my journey.
— Shayna Glass
Softball isn’t for the weak-a little wind can’t stop us from playing the game we love! Played two good games today for are first day of the Winter Championship @thealliancefp @pcflfastpitch @TCSFastpitch @FCMedina16U @Firecrackersinc @StriveSoftball @SoftballConnect @BBOS_Nation pic.twitter.com/a9vg28mgtS
— Shayna Glass (@ShaynaGlass2022) February 14, 2021
