Every softball player takes her own route in trying to realize the dream of playing at the collegiate level and, for some high school and club athletes, their efforts may need additional help when it comes to getting exposure to coaches in the best program fit for them.
Chicago-based athletic recruiting network Next College Student Athlete (NCSA) has been an option for many including current Florida State standout pitcher Kathryn Sandercock, who recently told Extra Inning Softball that she having the third-party help aided her recruiting in several ways.
“The recruiting process was daunting for my family and me as we had never been through something like it before. NCSA helped me a lot with my recruiting process by clarifying the process and helping us realize that we could do it.”
“They helped us to review and revise emails with college coaches,” the FSU pitcher explained, “provided a platform for my skills videos and recruiting profile to be seen, and answered every question we had— from what to look for in a school to what to wear on my unofficial visits.”
In an effort to help more softball players on a larger scale, NCSA—which is involved in 37 sports and works with a network of 35,000 college coaches nationwide—was named last month as the “Official Recruiting Partner” of USA Softball, the national governing body of softball in the U.S.
As part of its relationship with USA Softball, NCSA will provide recruiting education to student-athletes and families attending USA Softball events and will host exclusive online webinars for USA Softball members and athletes ages 13 and over, who will have the option to create a free NCSA profile when registering for USA Softball events.
They will also access to NCSA’s online tools and recruiting network of over 2,500 collegiate softball coaches across the U.S.
Sandercock, for one, is a fan of the recruiting-focused partnership.
“I think that the partnership with USA Softball is really exciting,” she says. “I think that it will help a lot of young athletes get the exposure that they need to play at the next level which will help to continue to grow our amazing sport.”
In an effort to help create equal opportunity for all student-athletes to pursue their sport at the college level, the partnership will allow USA Softball to select up to 25 athletes to receive NCSA’s All In Award, which “is given to deserving student-athletes who demonstrate financial need, a strong desire to play collegiate athletics, and a commitment to leverage their athletic talent to improve their life,” according to the organization.
Each All In Award recipient will receive, according to a release sent out by the NCSA, the “most comprehensive recruiting membership at no cost, providing highly-personalized support and guidance to ensure they have the best opportunity to find a college that is the right fit for them.”
“The NCSA partnership is a great opportunity for the youth teams that play USA Softball,” said Women’s National Team/University of Washington Head Coach, Heather Tarr.
“The NCSA platform is a prominent way for athletes to gain the knowledge and tools needed to elevate their chances of playing softball at the most elite level. I can’t wait to see the success that this opportunity will bring to our USA Softball athletes, coaches, and parents.”
NCSA President Lisa Strasman is another excited about what the two sides can do together.
“Representing over 120,000 teams and more than 2 million members, there is no bigger player in the game than USA Softball,” she says.
“NCSA’s partnerships with National Governing Bodies are some of our most important relationships, and we’re thrilled to partner with USA Softball to help their athletes and coaches find success in recruiting.”
Additionally, USA Softball will integrate NCSA’s recruiting software, Coach Packet by NCSA, into its events. Coaches attending USA Softball events will have access to the latest rosters, player data, schedules, and custom evaluation metrics digitally through Coach Packet’s universal iOS app.
All USA Softball national level teams will also receive NCSA’s team recruiting platform, Team Edition. Team Edition allows coaches to track and guide their athletes’ college recruitment process with easy-to-use software.
USA Softball is the 11th National Governing Body to name NCSA its official recruiting partner: USA Hockey, USA Baseball, US Lacrosse, USA Field Hockey, USA Track and Field, USA Volleyball, USA Wrestling, USA Water Polo, US Youth Soccer, and USA Triathlon all also work with NCSA to support their members with recruiting education and guidance.
