The purpose of the site is to aid team staffs of the Recreational League in their understanding of the fundamentals of the sport.

Specialized information, clips and references to other websites may be found in the links to the left, which cover Hitting, Pitching and Catching. These are typically the three main areas of interest. Generalized information for managers and coaches can be found in the links of the sections that follow.

ACE Certification

The Manager, Head Coach, Chaperone and Assistant Coaches of each team are required to complete the online ACE (Achieve-Certify-Educate) Training Course which is mandated by the Northern California ASA.  The ACE certification course is online and takes about 45 minutes.  It consists of a video and quiz that provide excellent insight and assistance into how to coach young athletes, as well as providing a background check and liability insurance.  Because the certification also covers the team staff members for insurance, volunteer liability and player protection purposes, it is mandatory that every team staff manager complete the training.  The course meets several of the league's goals for 2010, including addressing the 2009 survey demand for more training opportunities for team staff.  A book is provided the first year the clinic is taken.  The league will reimburse the Manager, Head Coach, Chaperone and up to two Assistant Coaches for successfully completing the course.

If you are a team staff member required to take this training, the document below outlines how to complete the training. 

Step-by-Step Instructions for Completing Ace Certification

Coaching Philosophy of MVLA Girls Softball

Planning Practices

There is a clear correlation between team improvement and practice organization.  This is true regardless of the experience of the staff.  That is, a very experienced coaching staff which does not plan practices may not witness as much skill improvement as a less experienced staff that puts an emphasis on practice planning.  Probably the most important factor is dividing the team members into groups, so that each player has a higher ratio of activity (to inactivity).  If different staff members are teaching different skills at separate stations, the groups of players can be cycled through the stations with less downtime and with more variety.  Keep the players interested.

In considering a practice, there should be:

• 1.  A PURPOSE - What you're trying to accomplish.  Such as, what are the different skills you want to impart during this practice (or this week or this season)?

• 2.  A PLAN - The approach to accomplishing the purpose.  Such as, what drills will be used during the practice?

• 3.  THE DETAILS - Which staff members will lead which drill?  How can player inactivity be minimized?  What space and what equipment are required for each drill station?  How much time should be devoted to the drills.

A more thorough analysis for practice preparation is available if you download the file: Planning practices.pdf

Alternatively, here is a link on "How to Run a Bad Softball Practice."

Here is a powerpoint presentation generated by John Parks for a coaching clinic for MVLA Girls Softball volunteers:    Coaching Clinic

Available Clinics for Players and for Coaches

For Players

• Pitching Clinic for 8u and 10u Pitchers
  8U-  1PM to 2PM Sunday, March 7th @Stevenson
  10U- 2PM to 3:30PM Sunday, March 7th @Stevenson
  
  Learn and practice pitching techniques.  For girls wanting to learn to pitch.  Girls must bring their own catcher (parent, coach, team mate, etc).

Coaching Clinics

RECOMMENDED WEB RESOURCES FOR IMPROVING OUR COACHING SKILLS

There are a number of different types of FREE resources for obtaining coaching information.  They include on-line instruction videos, open discussion forums, and instructional websites.  Many discuss only particular skills, such as hitting or pitching, but recommendations for the more general recourses are:

1.  If you only have time to benefit from one source of free instructional videos, there is a site that features the Olympic players and their Head Coach (Mike Candrea).  They cover a variety of different skills.  The direct link -          http://www.sportskool.com/sports/softball

2.  There is an amazing array of sites that describe practice drills.  It is difficult to single out just one.   But if you only have time to benefit from one source of drills, here is one that includes video demonstrations for some of the drills - 

 http://www.weplay.com/youth-softball/drills

3.  If you have time to benefit from regular reading of only one discussion forum, one is far superior to the others.  It is not a merger of softball and baseball and it does not permit bickering among contributors. There are many well known and knowledgeable contributors.  The site is -  http://www.discussfastpitch.com/

4.  If you only have time to benefit from one site that is directed toward helping us understand our responsibilities in our interactions with the players and other adults, there is one that has more than thirty short videos, including two videos that feature Jessica Mendoza showing the passion she has for the sport and what it has to offer.  The site is -      Responsible Sports

 Other resources that are also worthwhile include:

IF I HAVE TO WATCH A COMMERCIAL, THIS IS THE ONE I WANT TO SEE:

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QUOTES:

"He who dares to teach must never cease to learn."   --   Richard Henry Dana Jr.

"Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth."  --  Muhammad Ali

"If your players aren't learning what you are teaching them, then you need to learn how to teach them."  Lonnie Alameda, while coaching at Stanford.

"At the college level, softball players will often struggle for a single name if you ask them who taught them their swing or taught them how to pitch, but every one of them can state without any hesitation the name of the person who taught them the love of the sport - strive to be that person because there's no greater compliment a coach can receive."  -- Tom Martinez at a coaching clinic in 2001.  Tom Martinez is best known as being the mentor of quarterback Tom Brady, but he also is known as a strong softball coach.  

"If you allowed yourself to generalize the difference between coaching boys and coaching girls, perhaps the best explanation would be 'Boys need to play well in order to feel good, while girls need to feel good in order to play well."  --  Unknown

"You can observe a lot by watching."  -- Yogi Berra

COACH'S CREED:

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