NFCA FASTPITCH DELIVERY FEBRUARY 2015

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Fastpitch Delivery PAGE 1 FEBRUARY 2015

When Bradley University plays New Mexico State at the Troy Cox Classic in Las Cruces, N.M., on Valentine’s Day, there will be a newlywed in each of the dugouts.

In fact, that will be the first time they’ve been in the same city since January, when Chris Malveaux, the associate head coach for Bradley, dropped his wife, Kate, an assistant at New Mexico State, off at the airport the day after they returned from their honeymoon.

The teams square off a second time in the tournament the following day.

“We are looking forward to the game,” Kate said. “I’m playing my husband and my alma mater. It will definitely be a fun game.”

“It won’t be as fun for one of us,” Chris noted. “We’re both extremely competitive.”

That competitiveness means their regular softball talks might be a

little muted heading up to the game.“This week it’s going to be a little

different,” Kate said. “He’ll stop telling me things about the team.”

The duo met in 2012 when Chris joined Kate (then with the last name

Singler) on the Bradley coaching staff. She was a volunteer assistant for the Braves following two years

playing for the team. They spent two years together on Amy Hayes’ coaching staff and were married this past December.

It was a difficult decision in August 2013 for Kate to join the staff at New Mexico State knowing

she’d be away from Chris, but he assured her things

would be fine.“That was super

difficult,” Kate said. “I’ve always wanted to coach. He said, ‘Do it.’”

“She was able to fulfill something

she wanted,” Chris explained. “There’s piece

of mind in knowing she’s doing something she enjoys

and she’s with people who care about her.”Chris flew out for a week in

October and Kate returned to her native Illinois for the holidays, their wedding and the honeymoon trip to Cancun.

“It was nuts,” Kate said of their whirlwind holiday break. “It’s working out awesome, though. The Bradley staff and the New Mexico

““It’s about loving these kids. My players respond better when their coaching is coming from a place of love. We want to win, but we feel if we play for each other first, the wins will come.”

Moyer’s Fury Teaching Softball And Life Lessons

COACH’S PROFILE PAGE 9KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR,NBA’S ALL-TIME SCORING LEADER

FEBRUARY 2015 VOLUME 20, NO. 2

NATIONAL FASTPITCH COACHES ASSOCIATION

WORDS TO COACH BY...“Great players are willing to give up their own

personal achievement for the achievement of the group. It enhances everybody.”

Love Match For MalveauxsBy DAVE HINES

Editor

Hurry Up And WaitIOC Postpones Decision On Softball’s Status For 2020 Tokyo Olympics

The latest message to softball fans anxiously awaiting a decision from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on the sport’s status for the 2020 Tokyo Games seems to be hurry up and wait.

The Associated Press reported on Jan. 6 that the final vote on the 2020 list

of sports won’t come until the IOC meeting on the eve of the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, which is a full year longer than had been anticipated. IOC Vice President John

Coates told The Associated Press that the original plan to have a decision by this July was “too ambitious.”

“We understand the difficult decision the IOC faces in regards to the 2020 Olympic program agenda,” ASA/USA Softball Executive Director Craig Cress said. “The decision is important to many different sports. Softball and baseball

SEE IOC PAGE 19

Husband And Wife Coaching Against Each Other On Valentine’s Day

Vernon College head coach Melvin Jenkins says it’s important for assistant coaches to know their role in the team dynamic.

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Watch List RevealedCheck out the Top 50 contenders for the inaugural Schutt Sports/NFCA Division II Player of the Year award.

INSIDE

VIEWPOINTS PAGE 18

NEW MEMBERS ................................ PAGE 3DIVISION I HCC MINUTES ................ PAGE 4QUESTION OF THE MONTH ............. PAGE 8SOFTBALL BY SMITTY ................... PAGE 12EDUCATION ............................PAGES 13-14RULES CORNER .............................. PAGE 17

SEE NEWLYWEDS PAGE 10

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Fastpitch DeliveryPAGE 2 FEBRUARY 2015

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The NFCA is proud to announce the 50 student-athletes from across the country that have been selected to the watch list for the inaugural Schutt Sports/NFCA Division II Na-tional Player of the Year award.

The NFCA Division II Head Coaches Committee, plus the gener-osity of Schutt Sports, has led to the creation of this award to honor the outstanding athletic achievement of student-athletes in Division II soft-ball.

This inaugural group consists of 30 seniors, 13 juniors and seven sophomores that represent 37 pro-

grams and 18 different conferences across the country.

Nine programs garnered multi-ple candidates, including Caldwell of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, which boasted five se-lections.

Defending national champion and Lone Star Conference repre-sentative West Texas A&M picked

up three nominations, while seven more institutions had two apiece.

The Great Lakes Valley Confer-ence paced the way among confer-ences, with five of its schools and a total of seven student-athletes represented. The Lone Star (seven) and Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (five) each had four programs with players on the list.

The Pacific West Conference and California Collegiate Athletic As-sociation followed with three, while the East Coast Conference, Heart-land Conference, Northeast-10 Con-

ference and Northern Sun Intercol-legiate Conference garnered two apiece.

The Top 25 finalists for the Schutt Sports/NFCA Division II National Player of the Year award will be announced on April 8. While an athlete does not have to be on the watch list to be considered for the Top 25, the winner will come from the final 25.

The Top 10 finalists will be an-nounced on April 30 and the Top 3 on May 13 or 14 with the Na-tional Player of the Year revealed on May 26.

Varied Group Comprises Top 50 ContendersNEWS & NOTES

Colleen Bannister, Head Coach, Athol High School (Mass.); Clifton Davis, Head Coach, Knightdale High School (N.C.); Tonya Daye, Head Coach, Team TFS; Matt Geis, Assistant Coach, Witches Gold; Orlando Gonzalez, All-Inclusive Membership; Jamie Heflin, Head Coach, PA XTREME; Joshua Howard, Assistant Coach, Dallas County High School (Ala.); Aubrey Mable, Assistant Coach, Providence College; Jesse Martens, Head Coach, North Central University (Minn.); Robert Minichini, Assistant Coach, Fury; Thomas Noll, Head Coach, Our Lady of Mercy (N.Y.); Paul O’Brien, Assistant Coach, Bishop McNamara High School (Md.); Bradley Olson, Assistant Coach, Cincy Doom 99; Darren Petersen, Head Coach, TEAM Nebraska; Kim Reeves, Head Coach, Dorchester Academy (S.C.); Kaitlyn Reiff, Assistant Coach, University of Tennessee at Martin; William Reynolds, Head Coach, KC Jazz 01; Ken Sasso, Head Coach, Sachem North (N.Y.); Christopher Schultz, All-Inclusive Membership; Christine Sheridan, Head Coach, University of Pikeville; Mike Travis, Assistant Coach (hitting), Kentucky Christian University; Larry Yard, Head Coach, Top Gun Gold.

New Members

Louisiana Tech softball coach Mark Montgomery was recently selected as the Conference USA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) Coach-es Choice Award winner for the 2013-14 academic year.

The SAAC Coaches Choice Award recognizes a coach that is committed to fostering student-athlete development and welfare through a positive athletic and academic atmosphere. Each Con-ference USA institution selects a nomi-nee and then voting is done by the con-ference SAAC representatives during its annual in-person meeting.

“This is a tremendous honor for Coach Montgomery,” said Louisiana Tech Athletics Director Tommy Mc-Clelland. “This award represents what

coaching on the colle-giate level is all about: molding student-ath-letes into champions on and off the field.”

The Lexington, Ky., native stresses the im-

portance of giving back to the commu-nity, as his team regularly participates in community service events and he encourages his student-athletes to get involved with campus organizations and activities.

Montgomery also stresses hard work in the classroom, and his teams have posted at least a 3.0 GPA for the past 12 years, going back to his first head coaching job at Georgetown College.

— Courtesy Conference USA

Louisiana Tech Coach Earns Conference USA SAAC Honor

Watch List For Inaugural Schutt Sports/NFCA Division II National Player Of Year Revealed

SEE THE LIST ON PAGE 11

FEATURED TWEET

Montgomery

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January 13, 2015 Telephone Conference No. 2015-01The meeting was brought to order at

10:00 a.m. CST. Those present were: Michelle Burrell, America East Con-

ference; Kyla Holas, American Athletic Conference; Lonni Alameda, Atlantic Coast Conference; Bridget Orchard, At-lantic 10 Conference; Jen Steele, Atlantic Sun Conference; Amy Kvilhuag, Big East Conference; Barb Sherwood, Big Sky Conference; Dot Richardson, Big South Conference; Amanda Lehotak, Big Ten Conference; Jenny Condon, Big West Conference; John Seneca, Colonial Athlet-ic Association, alternate; Shonda Stanton, Conference USA; Lynn Curylo, Horizon League; Lisa Van Ackeren, Ivy League; Melissa Inouye, Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference; Karen Linder, Mid-American Conference; Heidi Cavallo, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference; Holly Hesse, Mis-souri Valley Conference, alternate; Steve Johnson, Mountain West Conference; Roy Kortmann, Northeast Conference; Jane Worthington, Ohio Valley Conference; Heather Tarr, Pacific-12 Conference; Jo Evans, Southeastern Conference; Mandy Burford, Southern Conference; Stephanie Hughes, Southland Conference; Rick Fr-emin, Southwestern Athletic Conference; Annie Smith, Sun Belt Conference; Holly Van Vlymen, The Summit League; Jessica Rodgers, West Coast Conference; Nikki Palmer, Western Athletic Conference.

Dee Abrahamson, NCAA Softball Secretary-Rules Editor, Guest; Vickie VanKleeck, incoming (Sept 2015) NCAA Softball Secretary-Rules Editor, Guest; Sharon Cessna, NCAA Director of Cham-pionships, Guest

Natalie Poole, NFCA Division I Repre-sentative; Carol Bruggeman, NFCA Asso-ciate Executive Director

Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cessler, Big 12 Conference and Michelle DePolo, Patriot League were not on the call.

1. Approval of December Call Minutes. It was moved (Steve Johnson) and sec-onded (Holly Van Vlymen) that the Decem-ber call minutes be approved.

2. Working Groups Updates. HCC cre-ated action items and time lines for work-ing group hot topics moving forward into the 2015-2016 legislative cycle. Updates, surveys, documents, and convention sum-maries were discussed. Below is the NFCA Convention Softball Summit Summary (written by Natalie Poole, NFCA Division I Representative) of each hot topic along with January conference call discussion items.

A. Certification of Events NFCA Convention: Softball Summit

Summary – There is a strong desire to

have better structure at recruiting events to aid in improved efficiency. This does not limit the number of tournaments held on a weekend, how much money is made, who the money goes to, etc. This will help coaches get all of the appropriate infor-mation for the student-athletes as well. In a straw vote, 75 percent were in favor of looking into this further.

1. Despite huge need for consistency in softball events, HCC felt it was unrealistic at this time to develop legislation for NCAA to certify softball events. Under current structure, NCAA will not support staff and time necessary to enforce certification of events. Action item: Working group chairs Natalie Poole and Heather Tarr will begin work on a “best practices” document to share with travel ball community and any other interested NFCA members.

B. Moving the Season Back NFCA Convention: Softball Summit

Summary - We began looking into this topic because February is winter and it is difficult to find consistent mild weather to compete anywhere in the country. ESPN, at this point, is requesting that we do not go this route because of potential program-ming conflicts. We need to decide if we want to push through regardless of televi-sion, or look into different options, such as limiting the number of games or weeks on the front end of the season.

1. Chair Steve Johnson discussed un-finished business regarding feedback on switching from 56 dates to 56 games. We need feedback on whether or not 56 games are too many games, too few games, etc. There are varying opinions on correct num-ber of games for softball because of weath-er issues, cost issues, etc.

2. There is not a high level of support for moving the season back one week only as most feel one week does not make a sig-nificant difference.

3. Action Item: Steve Johnson will de-velop a survey to share with HCC prior to next call. HCC will offer suggestions to en-hance survey and then survey will be sent to entire Division I membership.

C. Recruiting Calendar NFCA Convention: Softball Summit

Summary -There was unanimous desire for change to the current calendar. At this point, below are the agreed upon parts of the calendar:

*Elimination of 50 recruiting dates *Fall recruiting on Saturdays and

Sundays only *Quiet Period: The day after the first

weekend in August until the fall recruiting period

*Fall Recruiting Period: 6 Weekends counting back from Thanksgiving

*Quiet Period: The Day after Thanks-giving until the Thursday following the

WCWS *Summer Recruiting Period: The

Thursday following the completion of the WCWS until the end of the first weekend in August.

This would not go into effect until 2016-17 pending the NCAA legislative process and approval. Our next charge is to make sure camps/clinics are included during the summer and fall windows (this would in-clude institutional/non-institutional camps.)

1. Camp component within the recruit-ing calendar is still in question.

2. Action Item: Lonni Alameda will email recruiting calendar model including camp component to HCC. HCC will provide feed-back prior to February HCC call. Initial leg-islation will be written by end of February.

D. One-time transfer rule NFCA Convention: Softball Summit

Summary -The question is whether we as a sport want to be exempt from the one-time transfer exception. It means if a student athlete transfers they could receive athletic aid, practice, but not compete against out-side competition for a year. The purpose is to better support the idea of slowing the recruiting process down. In a straw vote, 90% voted in favor of wanting an athlete to sit out the year from competition, 10% against.

1. HCC felt transfer legislation may be challenging to pass under the current envi-ronment regarding student-athlete welfare. However, 90% of coaches were in favor of adding softball to the current transfer leg-islation having softball student-athletes sit out one year.

2 Action Item: Shonda Stanton and Barb Sherwood will reach out to NFCA Legislative Consultant, David Batson, and get feedback on whether or not the time is right to pursue this legislation. If legislation is moved forward, softball would be added to other sports who currently follow this rule.

E. Slowing the Early Recruiting Process Down

NFCA Convention: Softball Summit Summary-We are working on forming leg-islation to stop the recruiting conversations so early. The potential legislation reads:

* There shall be no recruiting contact (un-official visits, phone calls, text messages, recruiting conversations at camp) with a PSA until July 1 after their sophomore year of high school. There shall be no contact with a third party (high school coach, club coach, friend, teacher, etc.) regarding un-official visits/scholarship offers. We would like to move the official visit to their junior year with the same current parameters (13.6.2.2.1 and 13.6.3).

-This led to five straw votes:a. No recruiting with PSA’s or other

coaches until July 1 after their sophomore

year; 95 percent yes, 5 percent nob. Propose that recruiting conversations

take place at camps with sophomores or younger; 95 percent yes, 5 percent no

c. Propose to allow official visits during the Junior year; 90 percent yes, 10 percent no

d. Propose to put scholarship offers in writing beginning July 1 after their sopho-more year; 20 percent yes, 10 percent no (small sample, not everyone had an opin-ion and/or voted)

e. Propose that the NLI is moved to the junior year; 20 percent yes, 80 percent no

1. HCC felt is was important for legisla-tive proposal in this area to be clear and concise.

2. There was discussion surrounding whether or not Division I coaches should be allowed to coach youth travel ball teams. HCC had varying opinions: on one hand, it can be a recruiting advantage and on the other hand, for the sport to grow and for youth to be taught proper fundamentals, college coaches may be the best choice for teaching the game. It was suggested to add one question to the overall survey regarding this issue. (Should Division I col-lege coaches be allowed to coach youth travel ball teams?)

3. Action Items: Holly Van Vlymen will contact David Batson to get feedback re-garding the NLI process and get clarifica-tion regarding whether or not adding 7th and 8th graders to this legislation is neces-sary.

3. Other Business. A. Carol Bruggeman, NFCA Associate

Executive Director, attended the ABCA Convention in Orlando, Fla., and provided the group with several “hot topics” from the Convention. These included:

1. Allowing baseball to provide skill in-struction during the summer (similar to basketball who recently added this legisla-tion).

2. Adding an assistant coach for base-ball (total of 4 coaches).

3. Also of note, baseball has legislation moving forward to extend all Quiet Periods to allow more time on-campus with current student-athletes.

B. HCC was provided 2015 monthly conference call dates for the year.

C. HCC was reminded how critical their leadership role is within the organization. It is important HCC representative shares all information in a timely manner so there is no disconnect with any coaches or confer-ences.

D. Links Rule1. There was discussion surrounding

the Links rule and the experimental ball.

MINUTES – HCC

SEE HCC PAGE 7

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Following her fourth season as a member of the USA Softball Women’s National Team, Michelle Moultrie has been chosen as the 2014 USA Softball Female Athlete of the Year by ASA/USA Softball.

Moultrie has been a mainstay on the roster, collecting three World Cup of Softball titles, a Pan American Games Gold and two Silver International Soft-ball Federation (ISF) World Champi-onship Medals.

“I praise God for the amazing oppor-tunity to play for USA Softball,” said Moultrie. “Representing my country continues to inspire me to grow in who I am as a player and in who I am as a person. It is an honor to be named the 2014 USA Softball Female Player of the Year.”

Seeing action in 27 games last summer, Moultrie helped lead Team USA to a Gold Medal at the General Tire World Cup of Softball in Irvine, Ca-

lif., a Silver at the Canadian Open Fast Pitch International in Surrey, B.C., the Gold at Italian Softball Week in Azza-

no, Italy, and a runner-up finish at the ISF World Championship in Haarlem, Netherlands. A true threat at the plate as a slapper and power hitter, Moult-rie showed her offensive power dur-ing Italian Softball Week, where she hit .643 to earn the Batting Champion award as well as the Tournament MVP.

“Michelle had an outstanding season for us in 2014,” said Women’s National

Team Head Coach Ken Eriksen. “Her leadership and her passion for Team USA was put on full display time and again at every tournament.”

For the summer, the Florida alum batted .378, knocking in 17 RBI with two home runs and 20 runs scored. She had a .442 on-base percentage and a .635 slugging percentage.

— Courtesy ASA/USA Softball

USA Softball Names Player Of Year CandidatesNEWS & NOTES

ASA/USA Softball recently named the 50 Division I student-athletes that have been selected to its Watch List for the 2015 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award.

Now in its 14th year, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, given by the national governing body for softball in the United States, recognizes outstanding athletic achievement by Division I female collegiate softball players across the country.

The Watch List includes 26 seniors, 18 juniors and six sophomores, with freshman ineligible for consideration. Freshmen can be considered for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award once they have competed at the collegiate level.

Athletes on the list represent universities and 13 conferences, with Arizona leading the way with four athletes. Georgia, Michigan, Oklahoma and Oregon all have three athletes apiece.

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is also well represented, with

eight member schools that have players on the list, while the Pac-12 Conference boasts seven.

Eight athletes among the top 50 will compete as a members of the USA Softball Women’s National Team this summer.

The top 25 finalists for the award will be announced on April 8. While an athlete does not have to be among the initial 50 on the Watch List to be considered for the top 25, the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will come from the 25 finalists.

The top 10 finalists will be revealed on May 6 and the final three announced on May 20. The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be named on May 26.

Previous recipients of the award are UCLA catcher Stacey Nuveman (2002), Texas pitcher Cat Osterman (2003, 2005 and 2006), Florida State pitcher Jessica Van der Linden (2004), Tennessee pitcher Monica

Abbott (2007), Virginia Tech pitcher Angela Tincher (2008), Washington pitcher Danielle Lawrie (2009 and 2010), Stanford shortstop Ashley

Hansen (2011), Oklahoma’s Keilani Ricketts (2012 and 2013) and Florida State’s Lacey Waldrop (2014).


Moultrie Selected USA Softball Female Athlete Of Year

USA Softball Player of Year Top 50 Watch List• Annie Aldrete, C, Tennessee• Megan Baltzell, C, Longwood• Farish Beard, P, South Alabama• Bianka Bell, INF, LSU• Ally Carda, P/UTIL, UCLA• Lauren Chamberlain, INF, Oklahoma• Kasey Cooper, INF, Auburn• Cheyenne Cordes, INF, California• Emily Crane, OF, Missouri• Lexie Elkins, C, Louisiana-Lafayette• Tori Finucane, P, Missouri• Jailyn Ford, P, James Madison• Kellie Fox, INF, Arizona• Amber Freeman, C, Arizona State• Dani Gilmore, OF, Oregon State• Chelsea Goodacre, C, Arizona• Sara Groenewegen, P, Minnesota• Lauren Haegar, P/INF, Florida• Cheridan Hawkins, P, Oregon• Alex Hugo, INF, Georgia• Emilee Koerner, OF, Notre Dame• Kylee Lahners, OF/INF, Washington• Stephany LaRosa, INF/C, UCLA• Sierra Lawrence, OF, Michigan• Amy Letourneau, P, Northwestern

• Janelle Lindvall, C, Oregon• Sammy Marshall, INF, Western Illinois• Katiyana Mauga, INF/OF, Arizona• Branndi Melero, OF, Auburn • Laura Messina, P, Central Conn. St.• Haylie McCleney, OF, Alabama• Kelsey Nunley, P, Kentucky• Maddie O’Brien, INF, Florida State• Steph Pasquale, C, Nebraska• Shelby Pendley, INF/P, Oklahoma• Kaitlyn Richardson, INF/OF, Minnesota• Shellie Robinson, OF, SC Upstate• Sierra Romero, INF, Michigan• Kelsey Stevens, P, Oklahoma• Lindsey Stephens, OF, Texas• Kelsey Stewart, INF, Florida• Janie Takeda, OF, Oregon• Missy Taukeiaho, INF, Cal St. Fullerton• Haylie Wagner, P, Michigan• Lacey Waldrop, P, Florida State• Karley Wester, OF, Notre Dame• Chelsea Wilkinson, P, Georgia• Cacy Williams, INF, Wichita State• Hallie Wilson, INF, Arizona• Paige Wilson, INF, Georgia

Moultrie

The top softball teams in the world will again converge upon Bill Bar-ber Park in Irvine, Calif., for the tenth World Cup of Softball this summer.

Hosted by Southern California ASA/USA Softball, the World Cup, which runs from June 29-July 5, is an Interna-tional Softball Federation-sanctioned

event. It will include Team USA, Ja-pan, Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and for the first time, the USA Softball Junior Women’s National Team.

Super Fan tickets can be purchased through March 2 by sending an email to [email protected]. The $250 package includes premium seat-

ing for all seven days of the World Cup, a VIP parking pass, World Cup X t-shirt, program, souvenir ticket and pri-vate meet and greet with the 2015 USA Softball Women’s National Teams.

The game schedule and times for the Super Fan events will be finalized soon.


World Cup Of Softball Returning To Bill Barber Park in California

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2014 NFCA NATIONAL CONVENTION CLINIC DVD ORDER FORM If you couldn’t attend the convention or you just want to review a session that you attended in Las Vegas, you can purchase a DVD of many of the topics. DVDs are $20 for members/$25 for non-members (plus shipping and handling). Each features the speaker as shot in his/her presentation at the convention. All recordings are approximately 45 minutes in length.

DVDS (@ $20/$25 EACH) # $ SHIPPING ($6 FIRST DVD; $1 EACH EXTRA) $ TOTAL $

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DVDS NOW AVAILABLE!

DVD NAME & SPEAKER

“THE MIND MATTERS: WHY YOU SHOULD FULLY COMMIT TO TRAINING YOUR ATHLETES’ MENTAL GAME AS PART OF REGULAR PREPARATION & HOW TO DO IT”Tori Nyberg, Founder & Owner, Elevate Performance Counseling

“DRILLS, DRILLS, DRILLS”Mike Lambros, Head Coach, North Davidson High School; Kristine Himes, Associate Head Coach, University of Kentucky; Kelly Ford, Head Coach, Cal State-Fullerton

“SHOW AND GO: AN INSIDE LOOK AT MANAGING PLAYER AND STAFF PERSONALITIES”Lonni Alameda, Head Coach, Florida State University

“A CATCHER’S GRIND: MOLDING THE DEFENSIVE DIFFERENCE MAKER”Jen Schroeder, Former UCLA Catcher & Owner of Jen Schro Catching

“CREATIVE TEACHING: THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX”Randy Schneider, Associate Head Coach, University of Wisconsin

“THREE KEYS TO ELITE HITTING”Matt Lisle, Assistant Coach, Santa Clara University

“CHAMPIONSHIP DEFENSE: GETTING GAME READY”Chris Steiner-Wilcoxson, Head Coach, Alabama State University

“POLISHING AN ATHLETE: COMPLEX TRAINING OF POWER & SPEED STRENGTH”Michelle Martin-Diltz, Strength & Conditioning Coach, University of Alabama

“PREPARING YOUR TEAM FOR THE POSTSEASON”Kevin Blaskowski, Head Coach, West Texas A&M University

“PITCHING PERFORMANCE MEASURES”Rick Pauly, Pitching Coach, University of Georgia

“EPIDEMIC OF OVERUSE INJURIES IN SOFTBALL”Dr. Chris Mazoue, Orthopedic Surgeon, University of South Carolina

“HALL OF FAME PANEL”Dr. JoAnne Graf, Bill Edwards, Margie Wright, Dr. Gerry Pinkston

Longtime Cornell Coach Blood Will RetireNEWS & NOTES

Dick Blood, Cornell’s all-time winningest coach in a single sport in school history, has announced that the 2015 season, his 20th in the dugout for the Big Red, will be his last.

Blood was the Big Red’s first full-time coach who has overseen the program for 20 of its 22 years in existence.

“I learned many years ago that winning is important, but it is by no means the most important thing,” Blood said. “Your players are the most important thing. A coach cannot let winning get in the way of what is most

important.“I worked hard, I

tried to do my best. I’ve always asked our players to respect themselves and their opponents and play

hard all of the time.”Blood has compiled a 606-323-2

record (.652 winning percentage), including a 200-101 mark in Ivy League play. Among active coaches, his win total sits 49th overall and his winning percentage ranks 29th.

Blood has recorded an Ivy League

softball-record 606 wins to go along with five Ivy League titles (1999, 2001, 2004, 2009, 2010). His 200 Ivy wins are also a conference record.

He is one of just three Ivy League coaches to surpass 600 wins in a sport in league history (634 by Penn baseball coach Bob Seddon from 1971-2005 and 629 by current Harvard men’s tennis coach Dave Fish). He needs 29 wins to become the all-time leader.

His teams have won 30 or more games 13 times, all coming in a 14-year span from (1997-2010) which also include four of the eight 40-win

campaigns in Ivy League history.Under Blood, the Big Red have won

of four of seven Ivy League South Division crowns since the conference moved to a divisional format in 2007 and his teams have finished first or second in the Ancient Eight in 13 of the last 17 seasons.

He spent one season as an assistant coach at Dartmouth after 15 years as the softball coach at Hopkinton (N.H.) High, going 264-43 and guiding the team to eight state titles, including five straight from 1985-89.

— Courtesy Cornell Sports Information

Blood

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NPF Leaders OK Changes For 2015 SeasonNEWS & NOTES

The National Pro Fastpitch’s League Management Committee approved several changes ahead of the 2015 season recently during their Affiliate Team Owners and Licensees meetings in Kissimmee, Fla.

The group unanimously passed a motion to implement a tiebreaker in the eighth inning of a “true” doubleheader, meaning the same two teams playing each other on the same day, regardless of whether the matchup was scheduled in advance or the result of a makeup game. A motion to implement a “run-rule” of eight runs

after five innings, meanwhile, failed to pass.

The group also voted in favor of allowing individual teams

the option to conduct autograph sessions as they choose for the home team, with visiting team continuing to require all players available for such sessions. Also approved was a motion to allow backstops to exceed the current limit of 30 feet and to continue playing by rules

implemented midseason in 2014.Umpires will be allowed to

confiscate any and all broken bats that occur during a game and immediately forward them to the league office for return to manufacturers to test to insure they meet regulatory standards. If a bat is determined to have been altered,

the player and team will be assessed appropriate fines.

The group determined that there will continue to be no tiebreaker in Championship Series play, while acknowledging that for television or other special circumstances (such as play delays), it may be implemented.

—Courtesy National Pro Fastpitch

Olympic Star Mendoza Leads Panama Clinic

Triple Crown Announces Teams For Mexico Tourney

2. HCC asked Dee Abrahamson, NCAA Secretary Rules-Editor if feedback is still welcomed regarding these two items. Ms. Abrahamson reported the NCAA Rules Committee does indeed welcome feed-back, especially from those who have ac-tually used the Links rule and the experi-mental ball. Rules Committee welcomes productive comments and feedback.

3. There are 8 coaches on the NCAA Rules Committee (4 Div I, 2 Div II, 2 Div III) and each committee member makes a

decision on every rules proposal on what is in the best interest of the game. HCC information is advisory to the Rules Com-mittee. Majority votes decide the outcome on each proposal.

4. HCC members reminded each other to pay attention to all rules proposals and all conversations surrounding experimen-tal rules and actually try the experimental rules. Some HCC and Division I coaches missed the opportunity to use the rules and provide earlier productive feedback.

5. Conference Call. The next HCC con-ference call will be held at 10:00am Cen-tral time Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015.

6. Adjournment. The meeting was ad-journed at 12:47 p.m. Central time.

HCC MEETING MINUTES

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4

Triple Crown Sports announced the four schools which will play in the in-augural Triple Crown Puerto Vallarta College Challenge on Feb. 26-28 at Nancy Almaraz Stadium in Puerto Val-larta, Mexico.

Brigham Young Uni-versity, the University of Nevada, the University of Northern Colorado and Southern Illinois University will com-pete in this first-year Division I event.

Each school will play a four-or five-game schedule over three days at a stadium field built by event-producer Triple Crown Sports. The field sits a few blocks from a the beach and in the middle of a friendly, authentic Mexican community.

Teams will stay at the all-inclusive Sheraton Hotel, which sits directly on the Pacific Ocean and is only a few blocks from both the practice and game fields.

Almaraz Stadium seats approximate-ly 500 spectators, and local vendors will be on hand selling food and drinks.

“Puerto Vallarta is one of the friend-liest, community-based towns in Mex-ico. Locals love the game of softball and are excited to come out and sup-port this great event,” Tournament

Director and President of Triple Crown Sports Da-vid King said. “We look forward to this being an annual tournament with

the goal to give schools an opportunity to play competitive softball in a beauti-ful, tropical climate while experiencing the Mexican culture and giving back to the local community.”

This is Triple Crown’s 21st year pro-ducing tournaments in Mexico and the ninth year specifically for college events. More than 80 local teams use the Almaraz facility.

The event will kick off on Feb. 25 with practices for each school and clin-ics with local children run by coaches and players. Triple Crown will host a special banquet with all teams after completion of the games on Feb. 28.

— Courtesy Triple Crown Sports

Olympic softball gold medalist Jessica Mendoza and Jeremy Guthrie of Major League Baseball’s Ameri-can League champion Kansas City Royals held baseball and softball clinics on Jan. 12-17 in Panama.

The duo conducted clinics in Pan-ama City, Colon and Aguadulce, as part of the U.S. State Department’s Sports Diplomacy program.

Other clinics featuring star athletes were held in the Colombian cities of Bogota, Cartagena, Barranquilla and Santa Marta.

The programs highlight the rel-evance of engaging at-risk youth in sports programs as a way to encour-age leadership development and teamwork skills.

— Courtesy WBSC

FEATURED DRILLConcentration Game

By Patrick Murphy, Head Coach, University of Alabama

A great drill to use at the beginning of practice in the spring or right after a long layoff. The drill will get your play-ers thinking on the run and will get the entire team involved in communication.

Rules: 1. All ground balls to infielders go to

first base.2. All caught fly balls to outfielders go

to second base.3. After a ground ball to the outfield

to ICE* (coach’s discretion), the next ground ball is a double-play ball.

4. All line drives caught in the infield go to second base.

5. All balls past oufielders go to third base (relay system).

6. All ground balls to left field go to

third base.7. All ground balls to center field go to

second base.8. All ground balls to right field go to

first base.9. All bunts go to second base.10. After all bunts, the next ball to

third base, fakes to first base and flips to third (shortstop covering); the next ball to shortstop, she fakes to first and flips to third; the next ball to second, she tags an imaginary runner and flips to first for the double play; the next ball to first base, she tags an imaginary baser-unner and throws to ICE*; the next ball to pitcher, fake to first and flip to ICE*.

*ICE means home plate at Alabama

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For us in particular, playing outside is a challenge because the weather is so extreme when we play, but we are not allowed to practice in it. So,

the preparation that suffers the most is not being able to get used to those days when you are playing in a blizzard.

Brittany RobinsonSUNY New Paltz

The outfield suffers most when we cannot get time outside due to poor weather conditions. For teams in the Northeast, that means the majority of

January and February. You can simulate drills inside, but not having the opportunity to field true fly balls and take balls off live hitting affects the outfielders’ reaction to the ball off the bat like in game situations. It is a good opportunity, however, to work on diving and fundamentals for the outfield.

Susan Cassidy-LykeMolloy College

In the Northeast this time of year we are inside every day until March — hopefully. The main areas of concern are infielders taking

balls off of dirt, outfielders working fly balls and cuts and working on a full field team defense.

Tony CiccarelloSUNY Fredonia

Specifically speaking, our indoor facility does not allow for game-like fly ball work, due to low ceiling height and unnatural lighting.

Nothing beats the natural environment/lighting for outfielders to judge fly balls. Secondly, sliding on turf and dirt has a completely different feel for timing. Though techniques can be learned indoors, I prefer to work on sliding techniques under outdoor, game-like conditions.

Bob AlesiaESP Elite Softball

As we are an extremely northern school, we spend most of our season indoors. Some years we will play a 40- to 50-game season without

practicing on our own dirt. With the weather affecting most, if not all, of our spring, we suffer in the area of game speed. We have more than adequate indoor facilities for hitting, pitching, defensive work and even enough room to get our outfielders some quality workouts, but we can’t play nine-on-nine or go nine people on the field at full speed. Quality practice time is big for our program, but there is no substitute for game speed.

Don StopaUniversity of Minnesota, Crookston

Defense overall. Specifically, outfield fly ball work from a bat. Infield ground balls on dirt. We improvise to still get reps in, but are limited by

low ceilings and wood floors. We use those days to hit work on throwing, quick-release drills and footwork.

Tracy GrindrodSnead State

When weather is an issue or when we are inside during the first half of the season it is difficult for our baserunners to make good decisions

when there are hits to the outfield. It is also challenging for our defense to work on their cut system because our outfield depth is not realistic so this makes timing difficult.

Rachael ClickCollege of Saint Benedict

Our infield practice suffers, as the gym floor is not like working on a dirt field. On the gym floor, they tend to play soft for fear of sliding or

falling. I like for my infield to be aggressive and work hard.Dennis CoxRiverton Parke (Ind.) High School

I work with the outfielders and the weather really affects them when we cannot get outside. The biggest issue is my outfielders

getting time in seeing the ball off the bat — fly balls, line drives or just balls hit in the gaps.

Steven TudersGuilford College

The thing that suffers the most in my opinion is the mental game when we cannot go outside during season. Even though you coach against

that mindset, you can see it is harder for them to focus.Rick ScottPiedmont (Okla.) High School

Unfortunately I do not have an indoor facility so all of it suffers except for the mental stuff.

Charlie JonesMarauders Softball

We don’t have any shortage of infield work when we are indoors, but the struggle is to get game-like work for our outfielders. Many of our

breakdown drills for outfielders can be done indoors, but we can’t simulate

What parts of your game preparation suffer most on days when the weather won’t allow you to get outside?

Have a Question or an Answer?

Here is your chance to give input in a very simple manner – we need ideas for questions you would like to see answered in a future edition, so please feel free to share those ideas.

Respond by emailing Dave Hines at [email protected].

QUESTION OF THE MONTH

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Growing up traveling to softball games, it’s easy to see how Fury Fastpitch Co-founder and Executive Director Pat Moyer could end up in the sport.

“My dad was a men’s major fastpitch player,” Moyer explained. “We were traveling every weekend to games. There’d be 4,000 people watching. It was nuts.”

More than 20 years after coaching his first travel ball game, Moyer is as passionate as ever, talking about the importance of travel ball organizations to prepare players to excel at the collegiate level and for life after softball.

Moyer built a successful life outside softball, first as a Hall of Fame baseball and football player at Maryville College — he still holds six football records at the Division III school nearly 30 years after graduation — and later in the flooring industry. He returned to the sport to coach his daughter’s travel ball team when she was young, placing second one year at nationals.

“I jumped in to help and found a calling,” Moyer said. “We were pretty competitive, but nothing like we are today (at Fury).”

He also has had a hand in organizing and co-directing some of the top exposure and showcase softball events in the southern region of the U.S. and is in his second term as a member of the NFCA’s Travel Ball Recruiting

Moyer’s Fury Teaching More Than Softball

Pat Moyer has built Fury Fastpitch into one of the country’s best and most socially-aware travel ball organizations. Photos courtesy of Pat Moyer.

Tennessee-Based Travel Ball Organization Preparing Players For College And LifeBy DAVE HINES

Editor

COACH’S PROFILE

IN THE PRESS BOX WITH PAT MOYER1) How has the game changed in the time you’ve

been coaching?“It’s become more about power hitters and pitching.

Now it’s a balance between power and speed. Pitch-ing has always been the key to the game. They call it fastpitch, after all.”

2) What are some problems coaches now face that are different from when you started coaching?

“Budget. It’s become a much bigger investment for parents. It’s become fund-raising all year long. The ex-pense of playing at the highest level has become high.”

3) If you knew then what you know now, how would your coaching have been different?

“I probably would have placed a greater emphasis on pitching and learning that part of the game in the beginning.”

4) Is there a secret to success in coaching?“It’s about loving these kids. My players respond

better when their coaching is coming from a place of love.”

5) What would your ideal season be like?“The ideal season would be to have kids committed

to colleges they are excited about by July and qualify and win a national championship.”

SEE MOYER’S FURY PAGE 16

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State staff here have been great whenever I need to pick him up at the airport or he needs to come see me.”

THE NEWLYWEDS are about 1,300 miles apart at their respective schools, which is a 21-hour drive or a combination of two flights totaling 3-4 hours.

Then there’s the time difference. Bradley’s Peoria, Ill., campus is located in the Central time zone, while New Mexico State is an hour earlier in the Mountain. Add in varying practice schedules and other responsibilities, and sometimes it’s tough just to sneak in a phone call or text. They find a way, though, and they have some tricks.

There are apps for that.“I’m not that big into social

media, but I’ll send a photo from my day on Snapchat,” Chris said. “We’ll have a date night and we’ll go watch the same movie at the same time and talk about it after. It’s almost like we’re having the same experience.”

“IT’S BEEN fairly difficult,” Kate admitted. “Some days are easier than others. We both love our jobs, so it makes it worth it.”

Having both of them in the same profession helps.

“He understands my crazy schedule,” Kate said.

“She can describe what she did that day and I’ll totally understand,” Chris added.

In a perfect world, the two would be back coaching on the same staff in the same city. They love the people they work with, and like the path each of their teams is on, but they know they can’t live apart forever. Until then, it is manageable.

“If it means enough, you find a way to do it,” Kate explained. “We would love to be able to coach together (again) if it is the right situation. I love every minute of it here at New Mexico State.

“We’re taking it as it comes.”

NEWLYWEDS FACING OFF ON VALENTINE’S DAYCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

ABOVE AND LOWER LEFT: Kate Malveaux played two seasons for Bradley University before joining the Braves’ coaching staff and meeting future husband Chris Malveaux, with whom she coached for two seasons. TOP LEFT: Chris Malveaux is the Bradley Associate Head Coach (Photos courtesy of Bradley Sports Information). BELOW: Chris and Kate Malveaux on their wedding day (Photo courtesy of Kate Malveaux).

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SCHUTT SPORTS/NFCA DII PLAYER OF YEAR WATCH LIST

fly balls and relays from the gaps. We do get very creative and our staff feels like we utilize poor weather days very well.

Kevin GriffinBelhaven University

I would say the part of our game that suffers the most when unable to practice outside would be a toss-up between outfield and pitching.

Our indoor facility’s ceiling is not high enough for us to hit true fly balls to our outfielders, so them getting a proper workout is oftentimes difficult. Our pitchers struggle as well, having to throw indoors all the time. I have noticed

that their footwork gets thrown off by not being able to drag properly on the artificial surface. When throwing on dirt their drag creates a natural groove that they become accustomed to.

Cassie MillerUniversity of Nebraska, Kearney

Team defense and baserunning are the primary things we lose out on. When the weather is bad or threatening to rain out part of practice, we

have an indoor facility that we can move to and we transition our practice plan to be more hitting heavy, with some individual glove/throwing drills. But it’s hard to do that team defense work indoors. When the weather’s bad, I try to be ready with some whiteboard work to go over team defensive situations or to talk through game situations from the previous weekend.

Jay WatersWhite Lightning 98

QUESTION OF THE MONTH

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In the Peanuts comic strip many moons ago, Charlie Brown was on the mound pitching. Lucy, an outfielder, came up to him and said, “Charlie, we are losing 72 to nothing!”

Charlie said, “Don’t worry. We haven’t been to bat yet.” The final result of the game is unrecalled.

Well, in an important conference game, Smitty’s team was facing a daunting opponent at home. Both teams had their No. 1 ace on the mound, and both were quite good at their trade, having excellent records and low ERAs.

IN THE FIRST inning, Smitty’s opponent began shelling his pitcher and sent rocket after rocket into the outfield. It seemed the onslaught would never stop. Run after run scored. No doubt every coach who has been in the game for any length of time has experienced this situation.

Smitty called his team together after they finally got the third out, his pitcher having given up nine earned runs! Rather than chew the team out or rant and rage, he quickly related the Charlie Brown story. The players at first nervously laughed, but finally realized what the true message of the story was.

In the bottom of the first inning, Smitty’s team scored 12 runs before the opponents got an out, and got four more before the inning ended, thus leading the game 16-9 after one inning.

They went on to win 21-9 in five innings. They also won the second game by a huge margin.

Of course, this is not the usual outcome of a game where an opponent scores a bundle of runs right off the bat. Often, it occurs against an inferior team or one that does not have a competent pitcher on the mound. Rarely is it against a quality pitcher and team, although it has happened.

THE DISASTER might be the result of a pitcher throwing “meatballs” into the batter’s wheelhouse, meaning her control is “slightly” off. Batters love this situation.

The sound of the bat hitting the ball will often sound like a rifle shot, as the sphere meanders about the diamond, usually where no defender is. That, of course, is a mystery whereby it does not matter where the defense is positioned, the ball seems to find the open area — between third and short or left and center fields, for example.

Worse, the ball might find its way in fair territory over the fence. Very interesting, but unexplainable.

So what does a coach do when it is obvious that things are going awry? There are some options, none of which may quench the thirst for blood that the team at bat has.

What is available by way of relief may or may not be an option, as competent relief pitchers are hard to come by. Besides, a relief pitcher at this early juncture is not usually warmed up and prepared to come in. Wise coaches will see to it that any relief pitcher who may be needed will warm up with the starting pitcher.

Most coaches will call timeout before serious damage has been done when their team is being bombarded with rockets. They meander, sometimes run, to the mound. Other times, they will call the entire team together at the mound, especially when errors — mental

or otherwise — are prevalent. They may also discuss matters with pitcher and catcher only. Often, nothing works.

What does a coach say to a team during these critical

times? After the half inning is one thing, but how about during the battle when the conference is at the mound?

SMITTY, AFTER A number of years trying everything, has come to the conclusion that when there is a meeting on the mound it is best to try to be positive, telling the players that this is a good team, that we have faced adversity before, and that we will overcome. Other methods may be effective, and a coach must learn

by experience as to what will or will not help.

It is one of Smitty’s Laws that once a team puts on its hitting clothes, there is no way they can be stopped, no matter what the poor team on defense does, how many pitchers are used, what the coach says on the mound during a timeout or how many prayers are petitioned. By the way, it is likely that the deity does not stay up nights awaiting softball scores, and thus a religious supplication may be ineffective.

In all cases it is imperative that the thought of executing fundamentals properly be emphasized. It may not happen in spite of all training, but the idea must be emphatically emphasized in these dreadful situations. Players who put their minds to this task will often ease their frustrations and perform better.

That’s about all we can ask.

Dick Smith is the former head coach at the University of St. Francis and previously coached at Valparaiso University.

Want to argue, cuss or discuss? Email Smitty at [email protected].

SOFTBALL BY SMITTY

Stay The Course During Difficult SituationsBy DICK SMITH

When things are going badly for a team, every player is aware of the situation. They needn’t be reminded, especially over and over. Coaches need to tell the players the correct things to do, not tell them what’s not correct. They already know what’s not correct and simply need to learn how to fix matters. This is much better than a harangue after a bad game. Try it. You’ll like it.

SMITTY’S TIP

It is best to try to be positive, telling the players that this is a good team, that we have faced adversity before, and that we will overcome.

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One of the hottest topics in softball today is recruiting.

While I could write for days and still not cover every topic and every viewpoint, a recent event at a camp prompted me to write about parents and things they do to hurt their daughters when it comes to recruiting. While some of these things might seem extreme, please know that they are all taken from experiences I have had or stories I have heard as a college coach.

Do not make a spectacle of yourself at games, practices, visits or any other event.

This is a tribute to a few parents who we had to call the campus police on during a camp. While it seems a bit crazy that adults could not settle a dispute over who gets to sit where without the police getting involved, things like this happen all the time at softball events.

We have all seen parents yell at umpires, each other, their child, most definitely the coach and sometimes the other team’s coach. Unfortunately for their daughter, the college coaches watching this really don’t want to invite this to their campus, and, as such, will many times just keep looking for a little less drama for their team.

Not every school is a good fit for everyone.

Not every coach is the type your daughter will want to spend four years under when there are so many other options.

With that said, if a college coach tells you “no” for their school,

please do not fuss, cuss or give them pieces of your mind you might need later.

This will not get a “yes” from a coach. The biggest reason is that colleges talk to each other. They ask why schools start or stop recruiting players, and if they hear it was because their parent went crazy, they are likely to stop recruiting that player as well.

Do not call a college coach for your daughter, and especially don’t call a college coach and pretend to be your daughter.

Let’s face it, a grown woman sounds very different on the phone than a teenage girl.

We all know that when you are a teenager calling an adult to talk about where you want to play college softball can be a very unnerving proposition. This also presents itself with a very good learning opportunity. Talking to adults is a lifelong skill that we all must learn if we are ever to function in society.

Look at college coaches as a good opportunity to work on that skill. Most coaches understand you are nervous and they are not nearly as scary on the phone as they seem.

Remember, if they are recruiting you they want to make a good impression as well.

Keep the decision in the family. With recruiting moving to younger

and younger ages, the coaches are becoming more involved than ever in recruiting.

There are most definitely pros and cons to this, but I am very concerned when the coach takes over the decision making from the

family. When you are choosing a travel team make sure you have an understanding with the coach that you want to be informed of all college coaches who speak to them about your daughter.

Some coaches will only tell parents about the ones they think are good fits. While many, many, many coaches do things for the right reasons and truly do help young ladies find the best possible college fit for them, some just want to pad their ego and take control.

At the end of the day, your family and your daughter are making a lifetime decision and have to make good on the commitments you make, not the coach.

Families need to make decisions based upon a realistic perspective.

Again, finding the right fit is crucial. Families need to go see as many levels of college softball as possible when making their decision. Families need to see where they realistically feel their daughter can play and contribute.

Colleges are looking to replace current starters with better than what they have, so if you are not better than what they have, that school might not be a good fit for you. Everyone wants to go to a school where they can play, contribute and win. Just remember that they crown national champions in all divisions.

Frequently changing teams can signal a problem.

College coaches look to see how many different travel teams you have played with over a period of years.

If you are bouncing from one to another, it can show a pattern of “grass is always greener.” Colleges want players who are passionate about their school and cannot wait to be a part of their program. They

tend to shy away from someone who is always looking for greener pastures.

Don’t rush the process. This is a decision that will affect

where your daughter works a job, the people who will influence her at a crucial point in her life, help determine where she will live after college and so many more things.

Just wanting to verbal so the recruiting is done can lead to decisions that are regretted, and many times changed. Parents, you are the adult. You know the impact that this decision will make. Please help your daughter make a good decision and be patient with her until she is ready to make it with excitement and full confidence that the school of her choice is where she has always dreamed of playing.

Hopefully, if you are a parent you can find these things helpful. At the end of your daughter’s four years, I truly hope you can all say it was a great ride and you wouldn’t change a thing.

Megan Brown is an assistant coach at the University of Akron and the pitching coach for the Great Britain National team.

She earned her doctorate in kinesiology from Auburn University and was a three-time All-America pitcher at Florida Southern College, earning Hall of Fame induction for both her alma mater and the Sunshine State Conference.

Brown played in National Pro Fastpitch from 2007-09 and in Europe from 2010-13. She previ-ously coached at the University of Connecticut under longtime coach Karen Mullins.

Parents Can Help Or Hurt With RecruitingEDUCATION

By MEGAN BROWN, Ph.DAsst. Coach, Univ. of Akron

Connect With The NFCA On Twitter!

@NFCAorg

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“No written word nor spoken plea can teach your team what they should be, nor all the books on all the shelves. It’s what the leader is himself.”

— John Wooden

In the world of athletics, winning a national (or state) championship is the apex of achievement. Every coach desires the coveted “best in” title. Snagging a championship is a resume-booster and career highlight for most who accomplish it. But there are few who actually do.

Coach John Wooden is an anomaly who made a habit of being the best. “Success isn’t a destination; it’s a journey,” he cautioned. Wooden established a basketball dynasty by leading UCLA’s men’s program to 10 NCAA championships in 12 years (1964-75). His unprecedented success begs the question: How did he do it?

UNLIKE MANY other successful leaders, Wooden was generous enough to share his philosophy with the world. His “Pyramid of Success” has become a road map for those seeking to make success a habit.

The Pyramid cannot be adequately explored in one brief article. Volumes have been written by many brilliant minds working to understand Competitive Greatness (the Pyramid capstone) alone.

I humbly tackle this topic and examine just one aspect of Competitive Greatness here.

My athletes have told me on multiple occasions, “Coach, you are the most competitive person I know.” I sheepishly wear that title as a badge of honor and embarrassment, because competition has brought out both the best and worst in me.

I love winning, and I really hate

losing. Nonetheless, this competitive drive is not Competitive Greatness.

My sister, a basketball coach at a large high school in Texas, recently challenged me with a new perspective on competition. When feeling challenged or threatened, she said, “Do not become more competitive; become more focused.”

I was conflicted for a brief moment, until she completed her thought. “Being competitive is about the girl on the outside; being focused is about the girl on the inside.”

DID YOU HEAR the thud? It was me being hit square between the eyes. Ouch. What a concise and painfully precise challenge.

True Competitive Greatness is not about hating or even beating the opponent. In fact, the highest level of achievement has nothing to do with anyone else. Who cares about the opponent? They have opposing goals and are a necessary element of competition, but the other team is not the focus.

Competitive Greatness is about the girl (or guy) on the inside. It is about holding ourselves to the highest standard possible.

When challenged by an opponent, it is natural to turn the focus outward. Looking inside is not easy when feeling threatened or vulnerable. Nevertheless, Competitive Greatness is achieved in the affliction of confliction — when what we feel and what we must do are powerfully opposing forces.

IN HIS PORTRAYAL of coach Herman Boone in the 2000 film Remember the Titans, Denzel Washington vividly depicts the inner battle every coach should ponder. Early in the football season, Boone leads his team with attention turned inward:

“I’m not gonna talk to you tonight about winnin’ and losin’. You’re already winners ‘cause you didn’t kill each other up at camp. You don’t let anyone come between us. Nothing tears us apart. In Greek mythology, the Titans were greater even than the gods. They ruled their universe with absolute power. Well that football field out there tonight, that’s our universe. Let’s rule it like Titans.”

Late in the season, though, outward pressures prevail. “I did — We did not come this far to just break down and lose now. I’m a winner. I’m going to win.”

“Is this even about football anymore? Or is it just about you?” his assistant coach asks boldly.

COMPETITIVE GREATNESS requires intense discipline and demands a willingness to push oneself beyond the limits others see as prudent. This extraordinary determination can produce a drive that is paradoxically self-centered, yet focused on outside achievements.

Boone later questions his own motivation, “You think I was blinded by my own ambition?” To which his wife replies, “Whatever kind of ambition it took to do whatever you did around here, this world could use a lot more of it, Herman.”

Balancing an incredible resolve to succeed with a self-disciplined, inward focus. This is where Competitive Greatness thrives.

After reevaluating his perspective, Boone challenges his team, “It’s all right. We’re in a fight. You boys are doing all that you can do. Anybody can see that. Win or lose, we gonna walk out of this stadium tonight with our heads held high. Do your best. That’s all anybody can ask for.”

This motivational moment unfolded at halftime of the state

championship game, and the Titans did go on to win. Regardless of the outcome on the scoreboard, though, proper focus produces success.

Wooden’s view of success relieves the unhealthy anxiety of competition (the people and outward circumstances we cannot control) and fuels the necessary pressure of focused self-discipline.

AN INTENTIONAL focus on the process we can control over the results we cannot provides freedom from the fear of failure and allows us to dream bigger and reach farther without worry over the outcome.

As coaches, we can watch inspirational movies and study words from the greatest leaders in history, but ultimately Competitive Greatness is the result of our own proper focus.

Who am I? Who are you?To achieve greatness, focus on the

girl (or guy) on the inside.

By CHARITY BUTLERFounder, Exceed Sports

Charity Butler is respected nationally & in-ternationally as a pro athlete, writer, speaker, collegiate coach, hitting instructor and Certi-fied Intrinsic Life Coach®.

As a Pro Speaker for Sports World, Inc, Butler travels the country speaking to more than 40,000 people annually. As a recognized ex-pert in confidence training, she also presents at various conferences, colleges & universities.

Butler is the founder of Exceed Sports, LLC (www.Exceed-Sports.com) and of the I HEART FASTPITCH Campaign (www.iheartfastpitch.com). Follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @CharityButler

To Reach Greatness, Have An Inward FocusEDUCATION

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If experience was simply what has happened, it would not be particularly important. Experiences are valuable because athletes can learn from them. The goal is to have effective responses that lead to a good approach the next time a similar situation arises.

Most athletes respond appropriately some of the time, but leaders do it systematically. How? After any situation, they ask these questions:

1. What was I trying to do?2. How did it go?3. Why?4. What do I want to do the next time that I find myself in a similar situation?5. How might I achieve that?Use of each of these questions

after a performance is analogous to not skipping a step in solving a long division math problem. This ensures that the athlete attends to the appropriate details of the situation and forms hypotheses about how to improve the things that did not work.

THE FIRST question, “What was I trying to do?” is hopefully a review, because this question should have been answered in the athlete’s approach. Hopefully, she knew her specific and controllable job.

The answer to the second question, “How did it go?” specifically addresses the first question, rather than falling into the pitfall of being outcome-oriented. If the performance went well, then the answer to the third question, “Why?” is some version of “because I am skilled.” Then, the answer to the fourth question, “What do I want to do next time?” is “the same thing.”

If the performance did not go as well as it could have, then the leader searches for the reason. “I don’t know” is a common answer. This makes sense, because if she knew, she

probably would have fixed it. Still, the “don’t know” answer is easy — and unacceptable. Leaders guess. Some helpful guidelines for guessing follow.

Why did the performance not go well? First, a leader makes sure that it was her controllable behavior — not just the outcome — that was less than ideal.

NEXT, she checks her focus. If she saw the play well, she reflects on her hype level next. If she failed to focus appropriately or was out of control, noticing this is critical.

Without this awareness, her analysis is likely to lead her to change the wrong thing. If she is satisfied by her focus and her hype level, she moves on to the many other possibilities of strategy or mechanics and forms a best guess.

Guessing often and paying attention

to the results and outcomes produced over time leads to skill at guessing, which is also known as intelligence.

LEADERS ARE smart ballplayers because they consistently use their experiences to learn more about themselves and the game.

A poor response following one play almost inevitably leads to a poor approach on the next play. The disappointed or frustrated athlete who fails to ask the questions of an effective rational response and incorporate her answers into an effective approach to the next play is not accepting full responsibility for her behavior.

She is not putting the needs of the team in front of her own needs to dramatize or succumb to her struggles. She is not mindful of the fact that softball is supposed to be challenging.

Athletes respond to adversity either emotionally or rationally. Leaders choose rationally, thus dramatically increasing their chances of creating an ideal state for the next play.

TO GIVE their best effort, they either maintain an even keel throughout or they flush the past before beginning their routine for the next pitch — often by forgiving, because nobody is perfect.

Communicating mind to muscle is not always easy. The simplest guess is a great place to start. Leaders often hypothesize that a basic reminder of what is desired will produce that result. If that does not work, they get creative in figuring out ways to make the adjustment. Strategies include power phrases, imagery, and physical rehearsal.

By AARON WEINTRAUBMental Training Expert

Aaron Weintraub runs www.CoachTraub.com, a consulting business with the mis-sion of over-delivering value on goods and services designed to help you and yours win the mental side of the game. He also recently launched a blog called Smile Coach.

His website, www.smilenowcoach.com, is dedicated to inspiring you to inspire others with short articles and videos.

Weintraub holds a bachelor’s of arts de-gree from Emory University and a master’s of education degree from the University of Virginia. Before becoming a full-time mental skills coach, Weintraub served as an assistant baseball coach for 13 years at Emory, the University of Virginia, Presbyterian College, Brevard College and Cedar Valley College. He is married with four children and lives in The Colony, Texas.

What You Do With Experiences MattersTRAINING YOUR MIND

Effective Rational Responses

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Perfectionism may have been my greatest and worst asset growing up.

It may have kept me from rushing things and making a mess of them, and yet held me back from doing what I really wanted. It was the catalyst to some of my greatest desires to be good at what I did and was the fear that I wasn’t good enough. And in some ways it is still all of those things.

I grew up grateful to have a mother who always offered words of encouragement or life lessons. Three of the things that always stuck with me were her constant reminders of “This, too, shall pass,” “Do it good,” and “eat what you can.” Odd combination, I know, but I strongly believe they all go together.

I remember a long time ago a mentor of mine said, “You are either going into a problem, in the middle of a problem or coming out of a problem.” The good times, just like the bad times, never last. We live on a cycle of time.

Things come and go, the night turns to day every 24 hours. And then it happens again. And each time it does, we have a new shot at creating the life and the opportunities and the

positive experiences that we wish to have. This, too, shall pass — just like the good, just like the bad, just like the mistakes and the triumphs. It’s the cycle of life that we can always be sure of and we are always somewhere in between.

When my mom started using the phrase “do it good,” it was just always something she said. I didn’t give it much thought, until much after the fact. I realize now that she didn’t say “do it perfectly” or “don’t mess it up.” She said do it good.

I always took that to mean that I should always do my best no matter what, but not to be preoccupied with perfection or worrying about making mistakes. I knew there was room in between having to be perfect and not giving all I had.

I ALSO OFTEN struggled with not being able to finish my food sometimes when I was younger. I wish that struggle was still something I dealt with today, but nonetheless it was real when I was a little girl. I remember feeling upset if I was full and didn’t get to the rest of my food on my plate or if I took too much by accident.

Mom always told me, “eat what you can.” Those words always made me feel like I wasn’t going to get in

trouble if I couldn’t finish it or if I wasn’t able to join the clean plate club that night. It took the stress off having to make sure I didn’t take one string bean more than I could eat or made me cry looking at the last lonely potato on my plate that I just could not find the room for in my stomach. I knew there was this place in between where I would be OK.

I THINK THAT is one of the most subtle, yet wonderful, lessons mom taught me growing up. I swear I can hear “everything in moderation” in her voice as well. She taught me to strive for my best and do what I could. But she always taught me that there are moments when we show up and find ourselves naturally in the “in between.”

The stress of perfection and the guilt of not being good enough was never her M.O. She knew better. A kid who already has perfectionist tendencies would end up paralyzed if she was told she had to be perfect or if she was told she was never good enough.

Unfortunately in my travels I have seen athletes and children alike who are struggling with this feeling. Sometimes maybe they just need to be told that in this moment they are

OK just where they are. The stress is enough to make them crumble.

“This, too, shall pass.” “Do it good.” “Eat what you can.”

Because truly, when we are on the right path between not enough and perfectionism, may we all find ourselves somewhere in between.

THE MENTAL GAME

Jen Croneberger is a mental game coach who speaks at clinics, team workshops and corporate seminars. She has been inter-viewed on ABC News (Philadelphia affiliate) on many occasions about the mental game, consulted by MTV’s MADE as a fear coach and was the 2009 Female Business Leader of the Year for Chester County, Pa. She works with many organizations and sports teams from professionals to youth and is formerly the head softball coach at Ursinus College. Follow her on Twitter at @JenCroneberger and find her on Facebook at Jennifer Lynne Croneberger. Her blogs and more informa-tion on her programs can be found on www.thefivewords.com.

We’re All Somewhere In BetweenBy JEN CRONEBERGER

President, JLynne Consulting Group

Committee.One day, NFCA Hall of Fame coach

Ralph Weekly of the University of Tennessee called Moyer from Oklahoma City.

“He said, ‘It’s crazy there’s not a single Tennessee team out here at nationals and we need to fix that,’” Moyer recalled Weekly telling him.

That led to the 2006 creation of the Fury organization.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” Moyer said. “We met at an Olive Garden in Chattanooga.”

THEY FIELDED one team that first year, two teams the next, and have had at least 10 teams since then. Currently, there are 12 Fury teams — ranging in age from 6-and-under to 18-and-under — that compete in tournaments across the country.

“I stay involved with everything going on, but focus on the recruitable ages (16U and 18U),” Moyer said. “Our goal is to build driven, confident kids who are unselfish and enjoy the

game. We want to win, but we feel if we play for each other first, the wins will come.”

Over that span, the Fury have had more than 150 student-athletes move on to college teams at every level, from junior college to NAIA to the three NCAA divisions.

THERE’S BEEN plenty of success on the field, too. Fury teams have won national championships in two of the last three years (2012, 2014) and won the 2009 ASA Southern Nationals. The Fury were also honored as the NFCA’s 2014 Southeast Region Travel Ball

Coaching Staff of the Year.Under Moyer, the Fury are an active

member of the community, especially with the Make a Wish foundation and The Salvation Army. Sixteen Fury players and coaches traveled to the Dominican Republic in 2013 to help out in some of the poorest neighborhoods in that country.

“We spent four hours a day at an orphanage, we worked in the sugar cane fields and helped repair houses,” Moyer said. “We traveled all over that year. We went to Colorado, played at

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SEE MOYER’S FURY PAGE 19

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In last month’s article we discussed some of the myths that have surrounded softball for many years, along with some truths that may surprise people. This article will cover a few more.

Similar to last month’s article, you are encouraged to decide true or false for each of the underlined topics before reading the details:

The base runner can be called out for being out of the base path

Before we can understand this statement we need to define, by rule, what exactly is the base line and base path. Yes, there is a difference.

The base line is defined as the direct line between the bases. Draw a straight line from first base to second base, and from second base to third base and you have the base lines between those bases. The foul lines mark the base lines between the plate and first or third base.

The base path is not so easily defined and actually has two components to it.

1. It is the traditional path traveled by the advancing runner; the runner makes her own base path. The runner is free to run wherever she chooses as long as her general direction is toward the next base. The only exception is that she must allow the fielder enough room to make a play on a batted ball.

2. The base path becomes important only when a fielder is attempting to tag a runner between bases. When this happens, the definition of the base path changes. The runner is no longer free to run wherever she choose between the two bases. The base path is now the direct line and three feet to either side of that line between a base and the runner’s position at the time the defensive player is attempting to apply a tag.

So unless the runner is avoiding a tag, she is free to make her own base path. That is why a runner is allowed to round a base as widely as she wants. But as soon as a tag play develops on that

runner between bases, the defensive coach should be alert to this situation and knowledgeable of the rule.

Visualize the runner’s position in relation to the base she is attempting to attain. Watch for her to move more than three feet to either side to avoid the tag. As a general rule, a fielder’s arms extend about three feet during a tag, which requires the fielder to reach for the runner.

If the umpire judges the runner is out of the base path, the umpire should declare loudly, “Out of the base path, runner is out!” The ball remains live, and other runners can continue to advance with jeopardy to be put out.

We have had a theme throughout my articles of getting a competitive advantage by knowing the rules. Here is the competitive advantage: Tell your fielders that as soon as they hear an umpire declare “Out of the base path,” tell them to stop pursuing that runner and throw to a base where you can get another out.

The base runner always has an absolute right to the base line

As mentioned in the previous section, the base runner does not have an absolute privilege of running in the base line or base path. She must avoid a fielder making a play on the batted ball. As more coaches have become knowledgeable of this, it is rare now for an umpire to hear from a coach or spectator, “You cannot call interference; my runner has the right to run to the next base in a straight line.”

The batter’s box is a sanctuary

Yes and no. With all the recent discussions and rule clarifications, most of us are well aware that the batter’s box is not always a sanctuary, either when the batter is receiving the pitch or after the pitch has not been hit. Of the major codes, only ASA states the batter must attempt to avoid the pitch that is in the batter’s box. The other codes have rightfully decided that the batter’s box belongs to the batter, but it is not a

sanctuary in which the batter can just stand and let the pitch hit her. So think of it this way:

• The batter’s box belongs to the batter

• The area around the plate, from the inside of one batter’s box line to the inside of the other batter’s box line belongs to the pitcher

Once the catcher has caught the pitch, the area in front of the plate now belongs to the catcher (batter’s interference will be covered in a future article) and the batter’s box now becomes a temporary sanctuary. The overriding philosophy used by umpires is expressed by these two phrases:

• The batter cannot just disappear. • The batter’s box does not have a

trap door.With these two philosophies in

mind, the batter should stay in the batter’s box for any action which happens immediately, as it is better for the batter to freeze and not move right away. Interference must be called if the batter, in her sincere attempt to get out of the way of the catcher’s play, stays in the batter’s box but moves in such a way as to position herself where the catcher is moving to throw the ball. That is very different than the batter freezing and the catcher causing the contact by moving directly at the batter, which is not interference (see the phrases above).

The batter is out when she steps from one batter’s box to the other when the pitcher is ready to pitch

Not true. The batter is out when she steps from one batter’s box to the other:

• ASA - when the pitcher is taking the signal

• NFHS - when the pitcher is on the pitcher’s plate

• NCAA, USSSA - while the pitcher is in the position ready to pitch

The NFHS, NCAA and USSSA rules are interpreted to be exactly the same. If the pitcher is on the pitcher’s plate, she is in position ready to pitch. In all codes, if she switches boxes any time before that which is listed above,

it is legal and the batter does not have to request time to do so.

A coach asks the calling umpire to appeal to his partners on a judgment call. Is this the correct terminology?

Be careful in using the word appeal in this situation. The word appeal has a very specific meaning in the rulebook. An appeal is a play or rule violation for which the umpire does not make a ruling until requested by a coach or player (i.e. missed base). The ASA, NFHS and USSSA list four appeal plays, while the NCAA has five. Appeals were covered in my October 2014 article.

So when you think the umpire has missed some part of the play, it would be better to ask the umpire to go for help to his or her partner, not tell the umpire you want him or her to appeal to his partner.

John Bennett has 26 years of umpiring experi-ence in fastpitch softball, working high school, travel and college games.

He umpired at the NAIA National Champion-ship Series from 1998-2003, and has umpired in National Pro Fastpitch, dating back to when it was known as Women’s Pro Fastpitch and the Women’s Professional Softball League.

Bennett has umpired Pac-12 and Big West conference contests for many years, earning standing as a crew chief, and has worked many Division I Regional and Super Regional games. The last two years he worked at the Division II National Championship Series in Virginia.

He recently finished his term as the Active Official for the NCAA Softball Rules Committee.

RULES CORNER

More Myths And Truths Of Softball WorldBy JOHN BENNETT

Longtime Umpire

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As the new season begins, our conversations turn to how we prepare our new assistant coaches for success.

We brainstorm over things like efficient scouting and evaluation methods, being able to plan and run practices by themselves, make quality contributions to decision-making in the program and proper student-athlete interaction, just to name a few points.

In writing this article, I have distilled our conversations down to the idea that new assistant coaches need clarity in roles, responsibilities and relationships to start a successful career path.

AS A HEAD COACH, I found that my time as an assistant was invaluable in my development and something I needed so much, that I actually stepped backward from being a head coach right out of college to serve two more years as an assistant. My foremost reason was the admission that I didn’t know everything, and I needed to work with someone who was doing things how I wanted to do them. I needed a mentor if my career as a softball coach was going to progress.

I personally wanted to step back and make sure that I felt up to par teaching the skills of the game. Others may choose to step back as a way to build competency in the administrative and player-management aspects of running a program. Regardless of your reason, as a new assistant you should be looking to learn while contributing to the success of a program.

Barring a special situation, as an assistant coach your purpose is to support the head coach in building a quality program. Depending on the dynamic, you are there to

either work for the head coach or work with them, and that role is important because the most glaring way to fail is not knowing your place in decision-making for the program. You aren’t the final decision maker for the team or program.

YOU MUST SEEK a program where you can be loyal to the head coach and his or her vision for the development of young people and a softball team. Your head coach has to know that you are supporting his or her decisions for the program and are publicly on the same page as information is released in and out of the program.

In our profession loyalty continues to pay dividends in the future. When looking for a program, clarify what your role will be. All assistant coaches have general responsibilities and duties, but what is your specialty, that thing that motivated your head coach to bring you on board. Your job is to do all of the things that the head coach does not want to do and is not adept at.

DID YOUR SKILLS get you hired to revamp an offense or direct a pitching staff to championship levels? Are you the architect of a new defense to return a program to postseason play? The key is that you possess a particular set of skills, and you need to keep them sharp and translate them to success on your team.

Now that we are in an age of specialization, it has made a big difference in how you are judged as a coach. There are more opportunities than ever for you to be hired, based on your ability to reproduce past success as a player or coach quickly. Your quality of life in your new position is increasingly tied directly to how fast you can implement your methods and see a return on the

head coach’s investment in you. In some cases, this means that you may have less stability in your position than more generalized assistants.

RELATIONSHIPS ARE one of the biggest areas where we have let new assistants to our profession down the most. Whether it be assuming that new coaches already know what things to do or not wanting to discuss sensitive or embarrassing issues with them, we have let them down.

The primary relationship you will have is going to be that of a professional and you need to carry yourself with an increased level of accountability and attention to detail. Being able to figure out the best ways to connect with your entire coaching staff and communicate with your administration will ensure your tenure gets off to a great start.

YOU NEED to clarify the expectations that the school or organization and your head coach have for you and know that meeting those expectations are the minimum of what you need to do daily.

The next relationships to be established are with your players and student staff. This area is most treacherous for young or first-time coaches. Friend is not the primary role you are to fulfill for your student-athletes. Please recognize that you are no longer a peer of these young people. It needs to be acknowledged that head coaches and administrators share some burden in this area because of perceived aversion to bluntly making this point to young hires.

Your decision-making must come from a place of mentoring and teaching. It’s not your place to hang out the same places you did as a player with the team. There is no place for sharing

confidential conversations about staff decisions. Assistant coaches should not be gossiping with the team members. This knowledge, while seemingly obvious, is key to establishing a respected and infallible role of leadership and mentorship with student-athletes and student workers.

I WANT TO reiterate that I believe the first step in supporting the success of new assistant coaches is to clarify roles, responsibilities and relationships for them. We must provide a clear definition of what part they will play on a staff, what they will be required to do based on their skills and how they are expected to interact with students and staff.

I am excited by the quality of young coaches moving into the profession (especially from the ballfield) and feel we are all responsible for helping them find success as quickly as possible.

By MELVIN JENKINSHead Coach, Vernon College

Melvin Jenkins is the head coach at Vernon College and a DeKalb, Texas, native.

He is a 1997 graduate of the University of Texas, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology with a minor in speech commu-nications, lettered on the Longhorns’ football team and assisted with the softball squad.

Jenkins earned his master’s in sport man-agement from St. Edward’s University while coaching there.

He has coached and taught everywhere from pre-K to high school to college level with Texas stops in Austin, Houston and Lubbock, in addition to time spent in California.

Assistant Coaches Need To Have A Clear RoleVIEWPOINTS

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Coaches, how many times has your slapper been called out on a bang-bang play? If they are as competitive as we are, probably one too many.

Usually, the first person everyone turns to is the umpire. “Are you kidding me, Blue? She was safe!”

Then that statement either turns into a smile — because you know she was out by a half-a-step — or a full-on argument — because, clearly, she was safe by a mile. These disputes could be more easily avoided with one of our Slapper Secrets, an adjustment that allows slappers to make up for that lost step (or two) down to first base — before they even make contact with the ball.

It all starts with their crossover step.

A slapper’s crossover foot should land in the top left corner of the batter’s box. Every single time. Doing so will afford her three major advantages:

1. She is four feet closer to first base. Many slappers start in the back of the box for fear of getting called out for stepping outside the chalk. In reality, their crossover steps are ending midway through the batter’s box and leaving four feet of space vacant in front of them. That’s four feet they’re already losing down the first base line before they’ve made contact with the ball.

2. Her barrel is in fair territory. When a slapper gets her crossover step to the top left corner of the box, her barrel is also four more feet out

in front of home plate. The closer her barrel is to the front of the box, the more fair territory she has to work with.

3. She beats the ball before it moves. When a slapper’s contact point is four feet out in front of

home plate, it allows her to make contact with pitches before they have a chance to significantly break. A pitcher’s best movement comes the last few feet from home plate. A

slapper’s best weapon is her ability to catch that ball before its peak movement.

Slappers are set up for the highest chance of success when their crossover steps land in the front left corner of the batter’s box. Not only will it give them the upper hand on those bang-bang plays, but it will also allow you to spend less time arguing with umpires and more time waving your speedsters around third.

Emily Allard and Kristin Jensen created Be The Momentum in November 2014 after graduating from Northwestern University, where the pair hit back-to-back in the Wildcat lineup and earned 139 wins and two appear-ances in the NCAA Regionals in their four years.

Allard is the NFCA’s manager of marketing and a member of the NPF’s Chicago Bandits, while Jensen is a writer for the Chicago Tri-bune. Follow them on Twitter at @EAllard24, @ByKristinLee or @Be_TheMomentum.

By EMILY ALLARD & KRISTIN JENSENBe The Momentum Softball

Slappers: Take Matters Into Your Own FeetBATTER’S BOX

have worked incredibly hard to get to this point of the selection process. ASA/USA Softball will continue to promote and work with all entities in our pursuit of being reinstated into the Olympic program.”

“AS MUCH as we would love to see a reinstatement in a quicker time frame, we respect and honor the timeline established by the IOC

and look forward to the continued support of softball and baseball internationally.”

International Softball Federation (ISF) Honorary President Don Porter, who worked diligently during his 26-year run as head of that organization to get softball on the Olympic program, then saw softball appear in four Games before it was shockingly voted out in 2005, said via email he still feels good about softball’s chances.

“While disappointed with the delay, we are optimistic that the decision will be positive for baseball

and softball for Tokyo 2020,” Porter said.

SOFTBALL — part of a combined bid with baseball to return to the Olympic program for the first time since both were cut after the 2008 Beijing Games —is a favorite among the sports vying to be added, due to Japan’s great love for the sport and the fact that quality stadiums and successful leagues are already in place for both baseball and softball there.

Among the sports competing with baseball and softball for a coveted spot on the 2020 Olympic slate include billiards, karate, rock climbing, skateboarding, squash and surfing.

AT ITS December meeting in Monaco, the IOC approved President Thomas Bach’s 40-point “Olympic Agenda 2020” reform package that allows for a more events-based system and abolishes the cap of 28 sports for the Summer Games.

That clears the way for host cities

to propose additional events for their particular Games, so long as the number of competing athletes remains roughly the same. The group also approved a new bidding process aimed at reducing costs for competing cities that would allow hosts to stage events in multiple cities, or even outside their country, if feasible.

COATES TOLD The Associated Press that Tokyo organizers will receive assessment criteria for the interested sports by the end of April and will have until September to formulate a list of sports they’d like to add to the program for 2020. To that end, Tokyo organizers have created a panel to consider new sports and will have their first meeting this week.

The Olympics will contested in Japan in 2020 for the fourth time in history, and for the second time in its capital city of Tokyo. The Winter Olympics have been held in Sapporo (1972) and Nagano (1998), while the Summer Games were previously in Tokyo in 1964.

IOC POSTPONES DECISION ON SOFTBALL UNTIL 2016CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Hall of Fame Stadium (in Oklahoma City). But if you ask them what their highlight was, it was that trip to the Dominican Republic.”

Moyer said something NFCA Hall of Famer and Alabama softball coach Patrick Murphy says often is one of his guiding principles.

“Players need to have an attitude of gratitude,” Moyer quoted Murphy as saying.

Later this year, the Fury have a domestic trip planned to Appalachia that has many of the same goals as the Dominican Republic trip — helping others and enriching the lives of both the people they’re aiding and themselves.

“It’s something I’m really proud of,” Moyer said. “It’s made a difference in kids’ lives.”

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It all starts with their crossover step. A slapper’s crossover foot should land in the top left corner of the batter’s box. Every single time.

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