Dear Parents/Players:
Hi, my name is Kristopher DiTommaso. I am the VP of Softball
for Prior Lake Athletics for Youth.
I wanted to take the opportunity to introduce myself and
provide information about the two softball programs that your
daughter may already participate in or may be considering.
P.L.A.Y Organization:
P.L.A.Y. is a non-profit organization serving the communities
in School District #719. The sole purpose of P.L.A.Y. is to
provide a fun and educational environment for youth athletics.
Prior Lake Athletics for Youth exists to promote the best
possible athletic experience for the children of school district
719. This experience includes being fiscally responsible,
creating a strategic vision for the future growth of our programs
(to include facilities), managing risk and ensuring the safest
possible environment for our children. It is the intention
of this organization to provide a venue where competitiveness
is balanced with fun, with an emphasis on FUN! It is our goal
to create a youth athletics organization that the citizens
of our community can be proud of.
Volunteering:
Each year the number of participants grow, which requires
even a greater need for voluntary directors, board members,
coaches, assistant coaches and team parents. You do not need
extensive experience to be a coach, just understand the basics
of the game and know how to have fun with the kids. That's
what it is all about, learning and having fun. (Any parent
can qualify for a coach.) Please indicate your willingness
to volunteer at registration time. We have several key volunteer
positions available for those parents who have interest. Some
of these volunteer positions offer registration scholarships
to the parents taking on these positions. Our most urgent
need is to fill our Director of In-House Softball position.
Please contact me if you would like more information or are
interested in applying.
Important Dates:
Important dates for the program can be found by clicking
on the Season Calendar link. We have a combined traveling/in-house
parents meeting starting 10AM Feb 16th @ PLHS Theater. It
is best to park and enter from the side that day, as there
will be a Basketball Tournament that PLAY will be charging
admission for. The side is easily accessible from 150th Street
and is a closer walk to the Theater from the side doors. It’s
important to always check the website as dates and locations
may change.
Softball Organization:
We have two tracks to our softball program “traveling”
and “in-house”. The programs share the same overall
mission of P.L.A.Y., but do so with different commitment expectations,
competition levels, and approaches to the sport of softball.
I’ve outlined the softball boards view on the main differences
in the programs below. Moving between the two different programs
from one year to the next is always possible should the players,
parents, or coaches feel necessary. The program leadership
and direction comes from our softball board.
In-House Softball:
In terms of participants, this is the larger of the two programs.
This program is less of a time commitment and shorter season
than traveling softball. Many of the participants in this
program are outstanding athletes and enjoy the game of softball,
but might have stronger commitments to other activities or
sports. All games are played within the Prior Lake and Savage
City limits. The main goal of this program is to provide a
means of teaching children between the ages of 6 through 18
the skills of playing the sport of softball. During this process
we want to create a fair and organized approach to securing
players, coaches and volunteers, which will demonstrate the
following principles:
- Make the sport fun for the kids, coaches and parents
- Provide a safe sport through the equipment and fields
we use
- Give kids equal playing time
- Teach the fundamentals of the game and create curriculum
for the progression of skill development
- Demonstrate admirable sportsmanship both on and off the
field
- Work as a team
In-House Softball is intended to be a moderate competitive
experience with the opportunity to have fun and learn softball
fundamentals. If you are looking for something more competitive,
you should consider Traveling Softball.
Please see the website for open volunteer positions in the
in-house program.
| Grade Level |
Pitching Type |
Practice and Game Nights (including some Saturdays) |
Grades 1st and 2nd
Grades 3rd and 4th
Grades 5th and 6th
Grades 7th thru 12th |
Coach pitch
Pitching machine
Girls pitch
Girls pitch |
(Mondays and Wednesdays)
(Tuesdays and Thursdays)
(Tuesdays and Thursdays)
(slow pitch) (Mondays and Wednesdays) |
Traveling Softball:
This program is a larger commitment from the players, parents,
coaches, and volunteers. More details on the specific time
commitment can be found on the website. Travel throughout
the metro and potential national tournaments is required.
It's important to remember that traveling softball is a step
up from in-house softball. Players will earn a spot on a traveling
team's roster (usually 12 players per team) through a Tryout/Evaluation
Process (please go to the tryout/evaluation link for more
detailed information), and playing time will be distributed
based on performance rather than equal playing time. It’s
expected that if you get a spot on the team that you make
the commitment to be at all practices, games, and tournaments.
The softball board feels that the main goal of our program
is to teach the kids as much as we can about the game and
give them as many opportunities to play as possible. Playing
at a certain level one season does not guarantee a spot at
that level in following seasons. Each season kids will have
the opportunity to move up or down based on their tryout/evaluation.
Please keep in mind - - what level the kids play at today
has no bearing on where they will end up down the road.
Traveling Softball is intended to be a competitive experience
with the opportunity to have fun and learn softball fundamentals.
If you are looking for something less competitive, you should
consider In-House Softball.
Please see the website for open volunteer positions in the
traveling program
* * *
Please direct specific questions to grade level and sports
directors who’s contact information can be found on
the individual sports board links and below.
In-House Softball Board | Traveling Softball Board
Kristopher DiTommaso
Vice-President of Softball P.L.A.Y.
kristopher.ditommaso@gmail.com
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