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Derek and Joann Allister of OnDeck Softball are known for discovering and launching the softball careers of many of today’s top players at all levels and are continually finding the next generation of standout athletes.
Through their tryouts, Jamborees and Elite Camps, OnDeck runs players through drills, competition and testing through their OnDeck Measurements division.
Extra Innings Softball is proud to work with OnDeck Softball to cover and promote their events–which will be more than two dozen in 2018–as well as posting top OnDeck Measurements (ODM®).
In today’s recap of last weekend’s Bay Area Tryout held April 7-8, 2018 at Olympic Continuation High School in Concord, California, Derek recalls how, like a previous event, it also was halted before it started thanks to Mother Nature!
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Last weekend brought back strong memories of the OnDeck Chicago Jamboree in 2016 where it had been raining for several days.
On the morning of our event, we got to the field at 5:30 am only to find it still raining. When we attempted to walk out on the field, we literally sunk 4-plus inches into the infield.
What were we to do?
We had 85 young players anxious to get after it and show their skills in front of the college coaching community and we had nearly 60 Division 1 college coaches depending upon us.
We also had dreams; we had hopes and we had peoples’ possible futures all resting on our shoulders . . . on our decisions.
So what were we to do?
Like everything we do in life, the OnDeck crew decided it was a matter of simply getting to work. When the rain stopped, the field crew attacked the fields and one by one those infields were restored to pristine condition. We pushed back the start time two hours.
We believed, and it worked: the 2016 Chicago Jamboree went off without a hitch.
The payback was received several weeks later. A Midwest family sent us an email thanking us profusely for not giving up on the day. It seems that an SEC school had come into town to watch the event, and that day the daughter was seen by the coaching staff. A visit was set up, and the young player committed two weeks later.
They couldn’t thank us enough for simply persevering. Needless to say, we were so excited for her and her school. It simply doesn’t get much better than that.
So last Friday on April 6th, NorCal had its second rainiest day since 1849! Unfortunately, we had two tryouts looming – one on Saturday afternoon and another Sunday morning.
The question was: what should we do?
As in Chicago, “get to work” was the only answer we knew. The field was basically underwater, but we had a plan. Seven hours later the playing surface was perfect, and the skies were blue.
We pushed the start time back an hour and by 2:00 pm we were ready to go. It turned out to be a great two days.
On that Saturday, April 7th, we got to work and we persevered. We decided the day was too important to give up and go home. Too much was at stake. Too much was riding on our decision.
Now we can only hope that last weekend’s 2018 Bay Area Tryout has as sweet an ending as did the one in Chicago. Certainly, we are hoping so.
The level of play at the tryout was superb. Both sessions were sold out, and the players held up well under our scrutiny. We had many outstanding performances.
Saturday seemed to feature a large number of very capable hitters who spanned all the different graduating classes. Sunday’s group of infielders was one of the best we have seen collectively in recent memory from a defensive perspective.
When the first Sunday group performed the double-play drill, it was truly something to watch.
Both days turned out to be great days of softball, and we will be anxious to get many of these young players in front of the college coaching community in the months to come.
Here are some of the top performers:
- 2022 Robyn Baldemiano is a super talented Middle Infielder who plays for Universal Fastpitch. This young lady is going to be highly recruited by schools across the country if she continues to work hard on her game. Robyn combines a solid defensive skill set at SS with a very competent offensive game.
- 2021 Morgan Salmon is also going to be highly recruited by schools all over the country as well. Morgan is a superb defender with some power potential at the plate. The California Suncats Middle Infielder has continued to develop over the years and she will now reap the rewards for all that hard work.
- 2021 Pitcher Paige Maier is a multi-sport star who excelled in the tryout. Paige is very athletic, has solid spin, and has a nasty change. She is also a solid hitter and athlete. Paige plays on the NorCal Xperience, and we will be excited to introduce her to the college softball community in June!
- 2021 Haley Painter is a talented Middle Infielder with excellent size and athleticism. Haley can really swing the bat, and is polished defensively at Shortstop. She plays for the Sorcerer organization and will be highly recruited over the course of the next few years.
- 2023 Pitcher Delaney Everett is a very good lefty talent who plays in the NorCal Firecracker organization. She has good lefty movement with very solid location and velocity. Not only can she pitch, but she also is a very solid hitter. It will be exciting to follow Delaney’s progress over the next several years.
- 2021 athlete Anna Bjorkland is a legitimate hitting prospect. She can hit pitches in all parts of the strike zone, and she can hit it deep. Right now, her prospects as a defender are still up in the air. This OC Batbuster is a solid pitcher who can also play some first base, but the big schools will be looking for Anna to swing the bat for them in the future.